FAYETTEVILLE – During the Lawrence County Independent School Board meeting Thursday night, School Nurse Nikki Wright shared the plans for the new Garden Club at the school called the Phoenix Farm.
The club will meet every other Tuesday beginning on March 29th at 4:00 p.m. and hopes to host an open house at the school sometime in May to show the progress of the club, as well as the rest of the school.
The group consists of 43 students, ranging from Kindergarten through eighth grade, and will offer the students the opportunity to work together and learn the process of gardening.
Wright has been working with Purdue Extension in acquiring grants to build an enclosed structure that will house 12 raised beds, with the dimensions of 30 feet by 35 feet.
Currently, the club has received $2,000 from Ascension St. Vincent Dunn Hospital and has applied for the George Arthur Foundation Grant of $3,000 as well as a Growing Together Grant for $1,500.
The students will keep journals throughout their experience in the club while serving other students in the school. The club will grow vegetables that will be used for school lunches and taken home by club members during the summer months.
The club will also attend the Lawrence County 4-H Fair where they will have a produce booth for members of the community will be able to enjoy.
Interim Board President Chad Shock said that this Garden Club is exactly the kind of thing that everyone could have hoped for would be an opportunity when bringing this school together.
