Atlanta – April 7, 2016 – Through the support of the Grow Your Park Grant from the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA), Atlanta-based nonprofit Park Pride has added 20 new garden beds at three community gardens in City of Atlanta parks.
Park Pride’s Community Garden Program supports 22 community gardens in parks across the city. With a core mission to activate the power of parks, the organization believes that community gardens bring a multitude of benefits to parks and to the communities that enjoy them. Community gardens provide a forum for neighbors to forge strong community bonds and they are a source of fresh, local produce – some of which is donated to neighbors in need.
In 2015, Park Pride applied for and was awarded an NRPA Grow Your Park grant, the primary goal of which is to benefit low-income families through the donation of locally-grown fruits and vegetables.
At Capitol View Community Garden in southwest Atlanta, 96 members of the community worked with Park Pride over three volunteer days to construct 3’ high raised beds for senior citizens, as well as several smaller beds for the neighborhood youth, truly making their community garden accessible for all ages. The Friends of Walker Park in the Edgewood neighborhood and the Friends of Anderson Park in Dixie Hills also received cedar lumber to expand their community gardens and replace deteriorated vegetable and flower beds.
Betty Hanacek, Park Pride’s Director of Capacity Building and manager of the Community Garden Program, is pleased with the outcome of these various projects. “Community gardens have the power to catalyze so much positive activity in parks. We’re so pleased that we’ve been able to support not just one, but three community gardens with the Grow Your Park funds. And the communities are thrilled as well!”
In addition to the purchase of the lumber for the garden beds, Park Pride also used funds from the grant to purchase new landscaping and gardening tools which are available to all Friends of the Park and supported community garden groups free of charge. Recently, the members of the Freedom Park Poncey Highland Community Garden utilized the tools while hosting a spring planting that included several new fig trees.
About Park Pride:
Founded in 1989, Park Pride is the Atlanta-based nonprofit that engages communities to activate the power of parks. Working with 90 local Friends of the Park groups, Park Pride provides leadership and services to help communities realize their dreams for neighborhood parks that support healthy people, strong neighborhoods, vibrant business districts, a robust economy and a healthy environment. Park Pride is active in greenspace advocacy and educating both civic leaders and the general public about the benefits of parks, and annually hosts the Parks and Greenspace Conference. Learn more about Park Pride at www.parkpride.org.