Pasadena Community Gardens Conservancy

Description

VISION - A trowel in each hand means better living for all Pasadenans

Pasadena Community Gardens Conservancy envisions a sustainable networkof community gardens throughout Northwest Pasadena - gardens to serve as sources of healthful fruits and vegetables, as well as centers for learning how to strengthen our bodies, create cleaner air and water, and build a greener city for us all

Pasadena Community Gardens Conservancy’s First Garden Project at the Villa-Parke Community Center

* PCGC, a fund of the Pasadena Community Foundation, has partnered with the City of Pasadena’s Department of Human Services and Recreation to open our city’s first public community garden at the Villa-Parke Community Center in April 2014. The two-part garden includes a 'roof’ garden for 30 families, and an in-ground garden for 80 Head Start pupils and their families.

* To build and sustain the garden, PCGC Trustees were instrumental in helping our city obtain a Little Green Fingers grant from Los Angeles County’s First Five LA, a county agency supported by the state tobacco tax.

* PCGC and the City of Pasadena are already talking about a possible second collaboration, to support a community garden at the Jackie Robinson Community Center, which is undergoing renovation, to serve residents of the upper Fair Oaks Ave. area.

Where the Conservancy’s Funds Are Being Spent At the Villa-Parke Community Garden

PCGC’s funding pledge - $100,000 over five years, or $20,000 annually - supports:

* A USDA-certified Master Gardener to teach gardening to 30 families at the roof garden, and 80 pupils and their families at the Head Start garden

* A certified Nutritionist/Dietitian to teach cooking, diet, and nutrition classes to the families each week throughout the year