The Dasie Hope Center in Wabasso partnered with the Florida Department of Health to plant the seeds for healthy habits during a recent Garden Day Workshop.
Children, parents and grandparents all rolled up their sleeves and dug into a fun-filled, educational morning, with Chelsea Seaver, FDH health educator, giving them a step-by-step demonstration on how to plant a garden.
Seaver said that Garden Day was established to connect families with healthy food choices by offering lessons on how to cultivate and harvest their own crops. The goal is to help families identify and consume healthy foods on a daily basis.
In addition to its being an enjoyable activity to bond over, by growing their own food families can minimize the use of pesticides, eat more fresh fruits and vegetables, soak in some Vitamin D, and achieve a sense of accomplishment.
Participants left with the pots and seeds they had planted during the workshop – carrots, beets, radishes and basil – all simple enough to grow at home in a pot, making it accessible to everyone.
“Today is an extension of the gardening we’ve been doing with the students,” said Verna Wright, Dasie Hope founder. “We’re going to plant a community garden and give what we grow to members of the Wabasso community and our Dasie Hope families.”
Wright said the community garden concept evolved after students learned that the basil in the spaghetti they were eating for lunch came from the raised plant beds at the center.
“When the children realized they could eat the things they were growing in the garden, they just wanted to plant everything. This way, they will get a better understanding of what it takes to grow a vegetable. I want them to see that they can be self-sufficient. You can get a meal out of a garden.”
Providing produce to the community also elicited fond memories of the past for Wright.
“My mom used to have a vegetable stand. She grew collards and tomatoes. I’m just trying to carry that spirit over into the community,” said Wright.
Wright founded the afterschool youth program for low-income children nearly 20 years ago in honor of her late mother, Dasie Bridgewater.
Wright was determined to create a safe, nurturing and positive place in the Wabasso area, where she was born and raised, where the children could grow into their fullest potential. They provide programming that reinforces classroom curriculum while encouraging creative and critical thinking.
For more information, visit dasiehope.org.
Photos by Kaila Jones
