Turner Elementary students to enjoy harvest of Farm-to-School program
May 12—ALBANY — A community meal celebrating the bountiful harvest from select Dougherty County school gardens will be held at Turner Elementary on Thursday. Flint River Fresh and the Dougherty County School System are celebrating the harvest with students and staff to culminate the success of the 2020-2021 Farm-to-School program.
Flint River Fresh Farm-to-School Garden Coordinator Jordan Parker joined the Dougherty County School System's Partners of Excellence program, Dougherty County School Nutrition Services and the city of Albany Recreation and Parks Department to restore and expand teaching gardens at Radium Springs, Robert Harvey, and Turner elementary schools. Harvest from the participating schools' garden sites will be among the ingredients for a community meal.
Students, Dougherty County Schools staff, community partners, including members of the city of Albany Recreation and Parks team worked alongside Parker to restore and expand the teaching gardens at Radium Springs, Robert Harvey, and Turner elementary schools. Last week, Parker and students harvested 79 pounds of produce from Turner Elementary School's school garden. The harvest included 19 pounds of carrots, 25 pounds of kale, 25 pounds of lettuce, and 10 pounds of Yukon gold and red potatoes.
Flint River Fresh harvested an additional 100 pounds of produce from the Commodore Conyers College and Career (4C) Academy for the Turner Elementary School garden community meal. The school system's nutrition services is preparing a healthy serving of roasted chicken, rolls and vegetables grown in the school gardens, including sautéed mixed kale and collards, rosemary potatoes, and sweet baby carrots with locally grown strawberries for dessert. Students and teachers at Turner Elementary School will enjoy the healthy harvest together.
Parker started the season of learning and growing with Ms. McCary's fifth-grade students at Turner Elementary School in January 2021. The community meal allows students to experience the benefits of sharing the fruits of their labor with peers, teachers, staff and family.
"It has been a joy to see students grow and learn throughout these past six months," Parker said, "(seeing them advance) from not knowing anything about agriculture or gardening to being able to label each plant, recall the variables needed for healthy growth, and learn how to harvest and use each produce item. I cannot wait for students to partake in the community meal and have a chance to eat what they grew with their own hands."
According to Parker, students expressed interest and excitement in exploring healthier eating options including trying some vegetables for the first time. Students participated in "taste tests" of dishes with ingredients from their school gardens, including salads and strawberry kale smoothies.
Parker and the Dougherty school system's nutrition department's Partners in Excellence volunteers installed, maintained, and nurtured the school gardens participating in the school garden-to-cafeteria program funded by a USDA-FNS Farm-to-School grant. Original plans to include all three participating schools for a programwide celebration were moved to the next school year due to current public health safety precautions.
Flint River Fresh community food garden programs include Build-a-Garden workshops designed to encourage and support all skill levels to grow healthy food at home. Program offerings include free bucket garden kits with everything needed to start a flourishing food garden. Families of students attending Radium Springs, Robert Harvey and Turner elementary schools are encouraged to email Info@FlintRiverFresh.org and request a free bucket garden kit sponsored by the Dougherty Fresh initiative.
Flint River Fresh is a 501(c)(3) organization aiming to make fresh, locally-grown produce accessible and affordable for people throughout the Flint River region while empowering the community and students through education and outreach opportunities. Visit www.flintriverfresh.org to learn more.
