St. Pius V School Community Garden Expansion

At A Glance

Location: 

Providence, Rhode Island

Primary Issue Area:

  • Food

Active since:

2018

Core volunteers:

34

Community Size:

37,000

Our Purpose

The St. Pius V School's Growing Gardeners Club brings together four communities in the Elmhurst neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island: Providence College (PC), St. Pius V School, St. Pius V Church, and Chefs Feeding Kids. The club invites PC students, school parents and staff, and local neighbors to volunteer to mentor St. Pius V students and to provide a venue for them to learn about starting, maintaining and harvesting a full raised vegetable and flower garden. To inculcate the virtues of philanthropy and charity in our students, they, in turn, donate all harvested produce to Chefs Feeding Kids, a local non-profit organization that helps to provide healthy and nutritious food to food-insecure youth in the neighborhood. Aside from learning practical gardening skills and learning about garden- and nutrition-related topics, the club fosters interdisciplinary thinking, collaboration, social awareness, and experience of belonging among its members and volunteers.