The Junior League of Collin County

Name of Initiative: Plano Community Garden

Issue Area(s): Hunger, Health & Nutrition, Voluntarism

Awards:  2009 Community Impact Award

Overview

Junior Leagues have been focused on health and nutrition issues for decades. In fact, The Junior League of Brooklyn’s pioneering work 100 years ago on promoting free school lunches in New York City ultimately inspired the National School Lunch Program in the 1940s. In that spirit, The Junior League of Collin County, working with the City of Plano, created a community garden on land donated by the North Texas Municipal Water District. The garden donates the bulk of its harvest to the hungry. In addition to the obvious benefit of providing fresh, healthy produce to those who need it most, the Plano Community Garden promotes voluntarism in the community and presents educational opportunities for local schools and children’s organizations. The garden is 100 percent organic, designed to be self-sustaining and environmentally friendly!

Community partners

• The City of Plano
• The North Texas Municipal Water District
• Local food pantries

How it works

JLCC members built the garden from the ground up, including the construction of the raised gardens and sheds. Members are also deeply involved in running the garden, developing public relations programs, coordinating harvests with the local food pantry, and supervising the garden’s maintenance. An important element in the success of the garden is an "Adopt-a-Plot" program that ensures that members of Plano community can also contribute to the reduction of hunger in Collin County.

What’s the impact?

The garden's benefits include promoting volunteerism in the community, presenting educational opportunities for local schools and children's organizations, and providing healthy food for the community's hungry.