KNYSNA NEWS - The Rotary Club of Knysna and Knysna Methodist Outreach NPO have recently partnered to collaborate on a sustainable food security initiative based in Hornlee.
The NPO Growing Upwards was appointed as service provider and has planted up a very large food garden at the Hornlee Methodist Church, which has been named "The Seed of Hope Garden".
A soup kitchen at the site serves over 1 500 meals each month to vulnerable community members and the garden will be of great help to provide nutritional vegetables toward these meals.
According to Growing Upwards, the three organisations share a common vision to obtain four key goals - to facilitate the development of a sustainable food garden that provides good nutrition for the vulnerable; to promote community ownership and involvement in the garden; to identify and mentor project leaders from the community, and to offer a training programme that includes entrepreneurship development in order to equip people with the skills to start and maintain their own gardens, as well as to generate an income.
Key to the sustainability of the project is that Growing Upwards will provide a year of seasonal garden planting and aftercare, which will incorporate a training programme for 15 members of the Hornlee community. To promote self-sufficiency,
Growing Upwards has developed a curriculum that focuses on both food gardening skills and entrepreneurial development.
Knysna Rotary's Clive Reed said Knysna Rotary is delighted to be part of this collaborative project. "The excellent training curriculum developed by Growing Upwards, incorporating both practical gardening skills and entrepreneurship, will be a foundation to build on going forward."
The Growing Upwards professional gardeners working with the Seed of Hope team to establish the garden.
Other Growing Upwards projects
Growing Upwards has overhauled or established eight other local food gardens since September 2020. These are located at educare centres, soup kitchens and an orphanage. Zandile Meneses of Growing Upwards said the organisation works directly with the Knysna community to raise funds and ultimately get healthy food on the table.
"We believe in passing on the skill of gardening and entrepreneurial training to the community, so that projects can be sustainable. Our head gardener, Sue Torrance, is a professional gardener and author of the well-loved gardening book, Take Root and Grow".
Growing Upwards has a waiting list of potential food garden sites that require funding. You can visit www.growingupwards.co.za for more information and contact info@growingupwards.co.za if you would like to view the funding proposal for new projects.
Knysna Rotary President Albert Lombard and Knysna Methodist Outreach NPO member, Arnaud de Groot, unveil the Seed of Hope sign at the garden site.
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