Green Heart Blog

Urban Garden Party – Launching the Urban Farm Campaign

You’re invited to an Urban Garden Party!

On Wednesday October 16th, 2019 we celebrated the launch of our Urban Farm and community asset on Charleston’s upper peninsula, the Urban Farm at Enston Home. Learn more about our biggest project yet and enjoy a good time with community partners and friends!

This event marked a milestone in community building for this project. It brought together Green Heart staff, William Enston Home residents, donors and community partners, schools & students for an evening of updates and celebrations.

Friends old and new mingled, got a feel for the beautiful* space, and a preview of activities that will take place once the farm is construction — a mock farmer’s market stand, led by youth; an outdoor cooking lesson; a demo garden bed full of sweet potatoes; and a central gathering area for community building.

Leading up to the event, Green Heart staff worked to engage community supporters, Enston Home residents, and students from three new partner schools (James Simons School, Charleston Catholic School, and Charleston Charter School for Math & Science). Students were visited by Green Heart Project staff and asked to spend 3-4 weeks envisioning, designing, and illustrating their visions for their future farm, on  4’x8’ canvasses to be displayed prominently at the Urban Garden Party.

Erin Snow’s 4th grade students current partner school, Meeting Street Academy, were asked to serve as Green Heart ambassadors for the evening, greeting guests, participating in a hands-on cooking lesson during the event, and offering a “taste test” of local sweet potato hash for attendees.

To simulate the future youth-led “pay what you can” Farm Stand, high schoolers from Charleston Charter School for Math and Science, alongside a farmer friend from Spade & Clover farm, ran a produce distribution. They helped attendees pick out fresh veggies, and educated about the summer Youth Internship Program, to launch in Summer 2020.

All in all, it was a fabulous night for educating minds and cultivating community around our newest project! A huge thank you to our partners, speakers, and to Mayor Tecklenberg for his ongoing support!