Youth in the program also learn how to cook and can the produce they grow in their garden.
he Daybreak Youth Center in Brush Prairie has six raised garden beds the clients use to plant and grow their own fruits and vegetables as a part of the new Seeds of Hope program.
Daybreak Youth Services in Brush Prairie is planting and reaping seeds of hope in their clients and plants alike with its new Seeds of Hope garden campaign.
The campaign, which is a part of the center’s Life Enrichment Program, is getting kids outdoors and in the kitchen as they plant, cook and eat fruits, vegetables and herbs they planted at the center. Madison Reiling-Mullins, the director of staff training and education at Daybreak, said the gardens were “birthed out of a real hope to educate clients on healthy eating, self sustainability and horticulture.”
Along with teaching the kids about the environment, Reiling-Mullins said the team started to think about new activities for the kids to do since many of the normal activities have been postponed or canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It’s also just a really great way to get the kids outside,” she said. “One of the gifts of living in the Pacific Northwest is the gorgeous summers we have.”
As of now, the facility in Brush Prairie has six raised garden beds full of fruits and vegetables such as corn, tomatoes, blueberries and onions with the hope of getting fresh herbs planted in the coming weeks. However, planting and growing food isn’t the only step for the center’s new program as Daybreak plans to teach the kids about composting as well as cooking and canning their fresh produce.
Reiling-Mullins said the kitchen supervisor at the Brush Prairie facility has a culinary background and is “more than excited” to teach the kids about cooking and canning. According to Reiling-Mullins, the program’s participants wanted to teach the kids how to grow and can their own food so when they go off on their own in the world, they’re self sustainable to an extent.
Reiling-Mullins said getting the kids outside and teaching was also a huge goal for the program. “I love the idea of getting the kids out of the indoors and being outside and really teaching kids,” she said, mentioning how she likes to show the kids they have the power to be able to create something that can self-sustain them and “learn what it means to have food as medicine.”
According to Reiling-Mullins, the kids at the center have loved the new gardens, and she finds them outside every day watering, weeding and taking care of their plants and shrubs. Although the gardening program was born out of the COVID-19 crisis, Reiling-Mullins said Daybreak plans to continue the program into the foreseeable future because Daybreak likes the way the program teaches kids.
“We see this as an opportunity to educate and inspire in these times and bring some hope to these heavy times,” she said. “We’re broadening their worldview and they get to see the fruits of their labor.”
Community members and gardeners can help and support Daybreak’s program by going to their Amazon wish list at amzn.to/2LcV5tz or donating to Daybreak at daybreakyouthservices.org/. Those wishing to donate can also call (509) 444-7033, ext. 2006.
