Goshen Community Gardens

CRG Fellows identified more than 15 community gardens in Goshen and interviewed garden leaders to assess need and interest for continued networking. The gardens were typically functioning with little awareness of nearby church, school, neighborhood, and institutional gardens facing familiar challenges with community engagement, organizing, and production. The garden leader at Trackside Community Garden expressed that he was largely unaware that others were doing something very similar. He now feels that there are others he can connect with, learn from, and exchange experiences and resources with.

Through convening multiple public meetings during Goshen Farmers Market’s Share the Bounty Week, Fellows helped connect garden and community leaders, and listened to common needs and aspirations. They profiled individual gardens in a series of posters sponsored by a grant from the Well Foundation, and developed a proposal for an online resource guide and part-time coordinator to support garden leaders by making local supplies, tools, volunteers, and expertise more accessible.

The goal is an empowered network of community gardens, leaders, and advocates to nurture ongoing collaboration and assist new gardens. Visit www.gardengoshen.org for more information about this project.