Marlon English carefully harvests cabbage from the garden behind a series of storage rooms on 79th Street and Rasin Street. Before pulling the leaves gently, crush the plant into a container of water – it checks for bugs before adding new produce to a room on the walls.
The 30-year-old Englishman is a co-founder of Stein Education Paradise at the Care and Life Center at St. Sabina, 7834 S. Racine Ave. , Where residents can “buy” at no cost.
The area, known as the “Food Desert”, said, “We want to have healthy food and provide a safe place for children.”
A.D. In 2019, the USDA will have the largest number of low-income Auburn Gresham residents living more than half a mile from the nearest supermarket.
One Aldi is half a mile from St. Sabina, and although there are many “food and drink” shops in the neighborhood, they lack fresh produce.
The Barbara Market, which officially opened on Wednesday, is dedicated to Barbara Stein. She and her husband, Dr. Liden, were the main benefactors of the Stein School Garden. Barbara Stein died in January before construction was complete.
St. George and St. Michael the Archangel said it was Stein’s idea. In 2016, she approached Effgerger about creating a garden where young people and locals can directly benefit from the produce.
“I don’t know anything about gardening, and you don’t really eat healthy, but she sold it to me,” says Pfeleger. And as I began to see our children from our school, our elders entering the garden, I realized what a golden opportunity it was.
The first garden will remain open outside the church. The new mall and community center, next to the church, opened earlier this year. The produce at Barbara Market is grown locally or donated from other local farms, such as trucks.
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Most of the structures in the garden – the plants, the grass, even the organic matter – are given by Lowus.
“Part of our mission is to connect with communities where our customers buy, and this is a way for us to give back, especially in underprivileged communities,” said Fred Stokes, senior vice president.
Stein Education Park also offers on-site job training; Four trainees are employed by Lows.
Plants such as kale, Swiss chard, chives, and green onions grow in wooden boxes behind the four storage compartments, and there is a production hall, a walk-in closet, and even a small art gallery.
Classes are held in the garden during the week. Pfeleger Every child in the Church’s youth institution is involved in classes on healthy eating and how to grow things at home.
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Amonte Campbell, the school’s education program manager, said students will also learn fertilizer and some water bodies.
But one of the main goals is to teach students about malnutrition and how it affects their community – and how to help them grow their own gardens.
“I see the students coming back,” says Campbell, “and I get their parents to ask me for a seed to grow up at home.” This is one of the most exciting parts of how he agrees with the students, and then they can encourage their parents to do some of the things we do here.
The community center in the garden also offers cooking demonstrations – a few weeks ago a fried salad and on Wednesday a kindergarten group learned how to soften watermelon.
Barbara Market is open Wednesday from 3pm to 6pm Even though the product is free, donations are encouraged.
Cyan M. Daniel is a staff reporter for the Chicago Sun-Times Report to America, A non-profit journalism program aimed at strengthening the coverage of communities in the South and West.