The Brownwood Area Community Garden is hosting their annual Vacation Garden School on July 6-10, with children ages 8-12 years invited to attend.

Cary Perrin of Keep Brownwood Beautiful is pictured above, instructing students in making Wildflower Seed Paper at the Brownwood Area Community Garden. The arts-and-crafts project is part of the third annual Vacation Garden School this week at the Community Garden. The event is funded in part by Brownwood Woman’s Club and Brownwood Garden Culture Club.  Besides planting, harvesting and observing life (read “bugs”) in the Garden, kids will learn about the concept of community and the role they play as members of that community.

Daniel Graham, coordinator of the Brownwood Area Community Garden and lead instructor of the Garden School, wants kids to see the big picture.

“It’s not just about planting a seed and watching it grow,” he said. “It’s about understanding that what an individual does can affect the world around them in so many ways. Yes, you can plant a seed and watch it grow, but we want kids to think about how that simple act can make a big difference in their community and in their lives.”

That concept is the mission of the Community Garden in a nutshell.

The Garden’s motto of “Plant Seed. Feed People.” defines the organization’s purpose. In the five years since it was first built on an unused sports field in a low-income housing area, the Brownwood Area Community Garden has donated almost 10,000 pounds of fresh, naturally grown food to area food pantries, primarily the Loaves and Fishes soup kitchen at the Brownwood Salvation Army.

“Kids at the Vacation Garden School will help deliver fresh produce to the Salvation Army,” Graham said. “And then, we’ll have lunch there on Friday, at the Loaves and Fishes soup kitchen, so they can see and taste the fruits of their labor.”

The Garden School is part of the Community Garden’s efforts to provide education on sustainable, natural gardening practices and is a collaboration of the Brownwood Area Community Garden, Keep Brownwood Beautiful, and Central Texas Opportunities, Inc.

Vacation Garden School is funded in part by grants from the Brownwood Woman’s Club and the Brownwood Garden Culture Club, making it possible for the Community Garden to offer the week-long event at a nominal cost.

For additional information about the Brownwood Area Community Garden, call Daniel Graham, 325-641-9029.