Thank You UCONN Dietetic students Jenn, Lauren, Victoria, ...and of course Jerica, our great youth crew leader for a great winter day in the garden. Great Work! 

Weighing in on child obesity

Obesity is a huge issue with adults and children, and at this meeting I've learned the true value on how Obesity is affecting the world. I never really thought about obesity until I started working for the Grow program. Eating healthy is hard to do because of all the temptations that are in the media, and everyday life situations. Weighing In On Child Obesity was a meeting that gave a chance for youth and adults to express there opinions on how we can change this cycle. I was very excited about being on panel. There were all kinds of important people there, legislators, doctors, other students, and also senators. It was the most wonderful experience a person could feel. If I had a chance to do it again I would. I even made it on the channel sixty one new and The Day Newspaper. I was interviewed by Laurie Perez and Judy Benson. Going to this meeting showed me responsibility, public speaking skills, and just how important it is to be active in what I believe in. Jerica Sandiford

The Blast Conference

The blast conference was the best. Not only did I get to meet wonderful people I got a chance to see Maine. When Shannon told me about the conference I quickly said yes I would like to go . At first I did not know what to expect. But later in the trip after meeting all the people who had ideas and plans like me gave me the at home feeling. Going to this conference showed me that there are a lot of people who have the same interest as me and are commons together to make sure that this plan will work. I had a blast at the conference. It was full of information from people with experience that they past on the friends family and the community. Maine was beautiful and the stay there was great. Thanks to all the people who allowed me to go to Maine to get that wonderful experience that will help me to father my career options as well as build my skill as a farmer/gardener.

Meeting with the mayor

Meeting with the mayor was fun and exciting. I was glad to have had the opportunity to speak with him. I have a lot of ideas for the Grow program next season and just wanted to share this information with the mayor. He is a nice guy and I hope during the spring we can work more together to make our city beautiful. During this meeting we talked a little about the program and what we do. To me it was a great experience and I hope to be able to talk more with people in politics and even those who want to hear about our program. Public speaking skills are key and I enjoy it.

Tucking Away Tulip Bulbs for Spring

GROW Hartford is participating in a nationwide program called Journey North that tracks the movement of spring as temperatures warm up and water becomes available. With global warming becomming a very real factor influencing the agricultural geography it becomes more important to collect data that records bird migration, temperature, and the emergence if the first green shoots in Spring; the first shoots to emerge of course, flower bulbs. As part of this study we planted 12 Red Emperor Tulip bulbs and we will watch and record their emergence and flowering. Gardens all across the country are participating and in this and recording data on the web site. Winter may just be setting in but, the garden (especially me) already has its sights set on the spring. Shannon

Just in Time For Winter

On Friday 10 volunteers from Youthbuild helped put the finishing touches on the garden before winter set in. With good spirits and in freezing rain, we raised the last of the beds, mulched all the bare beds, rolled up remay and irrigation equipment, planted bulbs and turned the compost. we couldn't have finished any sooner since less then three hours later we had the first snowfall of the season. Thank you youthbuild for your hard work! Shannon Youthbuild volunteers proudly pose over beautifully mulched beds!

Jerica learned how to change a tire and Shannon learned how to manage a large van loaded down with pallets as we swerved off the highway with a blown out tire. Everyone was fine thank goodness after suffering a servere case of boredom (jerica could only take so many logic puzzles) as we waited for Farmer Sam to bring us a new tire and we continued on our way.