RICHMOND GLOBE
April 2 - 8, 2008

Richmond Public Library Unveils
New Community Garden

“There’s plenty about my life I can’t change. Can’t bring the dead back to life on this earth. Can’t make the world loving and kind. Can’t change myself into a millionaire.
But a patch of ground in this trashy lot — I can change that.”
— Paul Fleischman in Seedfolks

By Clifford L. Williams
Globe City Editor

Inspired by the young adult novel Seedfolks, city of Richmond employees, community volunteers, literacy students, seniors and library users celebrated the creation of a community garden last week at the Richmond Public Library.

The garden, planted on one side of the library, is designed to provide the local community with opportunities plant flowers and grow food for harvesting. It will be supported by city resources, including water, landscaping and maintenance.

LEAP (Literacy for Every Adult Project) is the lead agency responsible for coordinating the creation of the garden. “The city has been really supportive in helping us develop this garden,” said Sherry Drobner, project manager for LEAP. “They provided not only advice and council on the garden’s location but also support from other city agencies.

“There was a concern that we did not put up fencing around the garden,” she said. “My response has been that if people end up eating the vegetables because they need food, is that the worse thing in the world? It is, of course, a food garden.”

Under the guidance of project supervisor Sam Charles and program manager Ron Shaw, Youthbuild Richmond participants who constructed the six planter boxes in the garden included Dominic Brown, Zunte Daniel, James Hill, Cornell Savage, Billy Smith and Linton Lee.

With the planting of peas, greens, peppers and tomatoes among a variety of other vegetables, the garden has become a place of beauty and nourishment.

The success of the garden will depend on the work of interested volunteers.

Community members are invited to attend LEAP’s monthly community garden meeting at the Richmond Works building, located behind the library at 330 25th St., second floor. The library is located at 325 Civic Center Plaza.

For more information, call Tarnel Abbott at the Richmond Public Library at (510) 620- 6561, or Sherry Drobner, LEAP program manager, at (510) 307- 8082.