On the evening of August 25, 2011 over 150 community gardeners, local business and civic leaders gathered on the ScottsMiracle-Gro Community Garden Campus for a night of celebration at the 10th annual Growing to Green Awards.
The night honored the hard work of community gardeners throughout centralOhiowith monetary awards in multiple categories, and featured a keynote address by Su Lok, Director of Corporate and Community Partnerships for The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company.
Honored on that evening was our very own Lindenresident and LMHS student Nathaniel Applewhite. Mr. Applewhite was the recipient of the Paul B. Redman Youth Leadership Award for his work in Ama Vera’s Garden; 2457 Cleveland Ave. Presented by the Conservatory’s Women’s Board, this award is presented to an outstanding youth gardener and leader.
Please join us in congratulating this young man for a job well done. In his own words
“Working with Kwodwo and the staff of New Harvest allowed me to see the Linden Area, my own community from a different point of view. Seeing the number of vacant houses, the number of vacant lots, drug houses and illegal activities put a black cloud over our community. But by making our community beautiful by way of planting flowers and vegetables we changed ugly store fronts to points of beauty and pride. We engaged the community and enjoyed meeting older people in the neighborhood who love gardening and creating beautiful spaces, this gave me a greater appreciation for the community I live in.
Nominee essays were judged by the Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens’ Women’s Board, community garden leaders and the American Community Gardening Association. The Conservatory’s Growing to Green Program is supported by: Abbott Fund and Abbott Nutrition, Bob Evans, Cardinal Health, Chase, The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company, GreenScapes Landscape Co., The Hinson Family Trust, The Nancy Wolfe Lane Family Fund, The Keefe Family Foundation, The American Community Gardening Association.
