AmeriCorps member Gabriel Beck served at Common Threads Farm during the 2020-2021 service year and is now serving a second term in AmeriCorps as a VISTA member at Growing Veterans. AmeriCorps members like Beck, who served as a food educator at Common Threads Farm, connect kids in Whatcom County to nutritious meals and food education. Beck's story illustrates how community gardening projects at Common Threads Farm contributed to creating healthy futures by not only by improving physical health during the pandemic, but mental health as well.
BELLINGHAM--I'm standing in a 2 1/2-foot hole that once belonged to an oak tree. From this perspective, I can see the garden from the point of view of the elementary school students I serve. From the outdoor classroom benches to the perennial beds, everything feels bigger. Moments like these take me back to when I was in kindergarten. My friends and I would spend hours hiding behind ornamental bushes on the playground, building homes for pill bugs or making plans for future adventures. While the world has changed since I was their age, Cordata Elementary's students play and appreciate outdoor space in the same imaginative and joyful way. This year has taught me the importance of gardens as spaces that nurture the entirety of a person--not just one's belly!
Tending the garden has been a source of healing for me. Over the last year, I've experienced a lot of heartache and feelings of helplessness, whether that be from life events or just being a young adult during the pandemic. Managing Cordata's garden helped develop some of the same skills I was learning from my counselor. Concepts like self-reliance, embracing playfulness, and practicing self-love naturally align with gardening. Like a dog that needs to be walked, the garden pushed me to go outside and care for it--even if I didn't feel like it. It fed me with veggies and fruits I could share with volunteers and the community. It even gave me bright flowers on overcast days! Although it never intended to provide these benefits, I appreciate how much it has grounded me in these uncertain times. I'd like to think that I wasn't the only one this year that felt the same way.
Besides improving my mental health and a getting a killer farmer's tan, my time in the garden has also been defined by laughter and profound joy young people experience from working in the garden with me. From hectic potato transplants to weed relays, kids found creative ways to get their wiggles out. Younger students needed little direction to immerse themselves in activities in the garden. I especially enjoyed helping students experience growing food for the first time. These tiny celebrations were a source of daily joy and fulfillment for me.
I've been involved with Common Threads as a volunteer, intern, and an AmeriCorps member. This relationship with the organization has made a difference in my understanding of the importance of reciprocity and community. The benefits of gardens go way beyond me and impact thousands of families in the county (from students to retirees!). Like a garden, we are nothing without our relationships.
I'm standing in a two and half foot hole that once belonged to an oak tree. I'm surrounded by co-workers and volunteers and I feel happy.
