Healthy Foundation

(Left to right) Frank Maxwell of the Door County Community Foundation presents a check to Door County Master Gardeners Deborah Javurek, Kathy Green, Kathie Vavra and Lee Somerville for their youth garden. Submitted photo.

The Door County Community Foundation (DCCF) recently awarded the Door County Master Gardener Association a Sustainability Grant from the Children & Youth Fund to support the Youth Spring Planting Program. This hands-on learning program introduces third and fourth grade students to the importance of homegrown produce.

Frank Maxwell, board member of the Community Foundation, commented, “The success of the Master Gardener’s Youth Program is truly a collaborative effort through which our students reap tremendous benefit. The experience of growing produce and learning about environmental sustainability gives them the foundation to make healthy decisions for the rest of their lives.”

Six 20 x 20 foot garden beds in The Garden Door are dedicated to the Youth Program and are maintained during the growing season by Master Gardener volunteers. Twenty dedicated Master Gardener volunteers supervise the students and teach the hands-on portions of the program. The staff from the Peninsular Agricultural Research Station and the International Potato Gene Bank also assist with the educational stations. For more information visit dcmga.org or GiveDoorCounty.org.