Gardening can change a child’s life, especially in a school where 96% of the students are classified as economically needy.
This past spring 35 Avalon Elementary School students spent 1,400 hours in Avalon’s Global Garden after-school educational program, thanks in part to a $4,500 Naples Garden Club grant for materials and field trips.
In addition to planning, planting and maintaining their gardens, the students took Saturday field trips to Naples Botanical Garden, ECHO and the Coastal Cleanup Day at the beach. They also participated in the Naples Flower Show, where they shared their work proudly with the public.
Avalon School’s Global Garden, a great partner for NGC, holds the Florida Farm-to-School Golden Shovel Award for the longest-sustained elementary school garden in the state.