The Rotary Club of Fall River Community Garden sees light of day

Posted by Kevin McNally on 10 July 2012

What started out as a seedling of an idea has blossomed into an initiative that is producing a lot of positive response from the Fall River community. A few months ago, I and fellow Rotary Club of Fall River board members Jo Ann Bentley and Carmen Aguilar started talking after a meeting and realized we had a common interest in making garden plots accessible to people who don’t have enough land of their own to grow a garden.

Jo Ann, principal of Bentley Architect, Inc. and Carmen, who is Dean of the Center for Workforce & Community Education at Bristol Community College and I wasted little time in turning our thoughts into action – with the result being The Rotary Club of Fall River Community Garden.  

The initiative got its roots with a seed grant of $1,000 from the New England Grassroots Environmental Fund, a Montpelier, VT organization with a mission to “energize and nurture long-term civic engagement in local initiatives that create and maintain healthy, just, safe and environmentally sustainable communities.”

The Rotary Club of Fall River Community Garden, sponsored by The Rotary Club of Fall River, is located at Bristol Community College, 777 Elsbree Street in Fall River.  The concept is basic – a total of 20 individual raised planting beds measuring 4’ x 10’ are offered on a “first come, first served” basis for a yearly fee of $20 each.  Those who have taken advantage of the opportunity this season have planted corn, squash, tomatoes, onions, peppers and more.  

We’re already planning for the 2013 spring planting season and look forward to again greeting this year’s “crop” of gardeners and meeting new fellow gardeners.

Our mission to provide a communal space where residents can come together and grow fresh food has paid off in a project that not only yields produce but also cultivates and nurtures the community.

The Community Garden’s website (www.rotarygarden.org) and web hosting services have been donated by Interactive Palette.