Two AmeriCorps VISTA volunteers in Pembroke, North Carolina were tasked with building the capacity of their organization, Sacred Pathways Soup Kitchen, and moving their neighbors out of poverty. Noticing the pervasive health issues in the community, the VISTAs developed a community garden to provide a sustainable source of fresh vegetables for the kitchen as an alternative to canned goods, as well as for area families and volunteers. Unlike other community gardens where one purchases a plot of land to grow her own vegetables, the Dig It! Pembroke Community garden is built by Pembroke for Pembroke. With this project, the VISTAs alongside their community will augment the amount of fresh produce in the soup kitchen, increase community access to fresh foods, and provide an educational tool for children combining gardening, exercise, and nutrition. The garden has served as a meeting place for community members to perform service while promoting improved behaviors related to physical activity and increased nutrition.

Robeson County is the poorest in North Carolina, and individuals in poverty spend 75% of their income on food. Therefore, providing those in poverty with a sustainable food source and knowledge for growing food increases spending power and self-sufficiency, allowing a family to escape from food insecurity. Not unrelated to the poverty level in the county, a third of residents are obese and over ten percent diabetic. By securing a source for fresh vegetables and spreading knowledge about nutrition, the garden seeks to impact these pervasive health issues in the community.

To provide sustainability to this venture, best practices enumerated by the American Community Garden Association indicate the importance of partnership and regular committee planning meetings. The garden therefore involves not only Sacred Pathways Soup Kitchen, but the Children’s Home, UNC Pembroke, an area church with a foundation in volunteerism, and the Cooperative Extension Master Gardeners. Partnership ensures mutual commitment to the garden, identifies committee member skills, and establishes regular duties within these skillsets for each partner. Best practices also indicate the importance of celebrating successes by using media, so the VISTAs created a website to highlight all garden happenings: www.sacredpathwaysinc.org/community-garden.

Though the garden’s original goal was to learn about growing fresh food and improve our nutrition together as a community, the benefits are widespread. The garden has increased volunteerism in Pembroke, offering a plethora of opportunities to groups, community members, students, and anyone looking for a healthy outdoor service activity. It has also produced a mentoring opportunity, as young volunteers from the children’s home have paired with UNC Pembroke students to tend the garden twice a week. Dig It! has also bridged generations as elders learn and serve with kids. This healthy outdoor activity exposes young garden stewards to the merits of growing their own food and teamwork. The VISTAs plan to use vegetables grown to conduct healthy cooking classes with youth. With a seed to table approach, this educational garden will move our community toward a healthier future.