Young activists plant community garden

Students in Lower School’s Young Activist Club got their hands dirty during their latest project to help make the Edgehill community better.
By Sierra Smith, Communications Specialist

Combining environmental activism with the call to combat food insecurity, students in Lower School’s Young Activist Club set out to find a way to use the benefits of gardening to improve the lives of their neighbors. 

“We learned about why it’s important for everyone to have fresh fruits and vegetables, so we wanted to be able to help people with that,” Lucas Lupu ’31 said. 

In need of funds to execute their vision, students began selling packets of seeds in early March. The sale featured seven types of seeds, and students upgraded their product by sorting the seeds into packets they artfully designed. Seizing an opportunity to support yet another cause the young activists are passionate about, they purchased seeds from a company that supports Indigenous peoples and people of color by giving a portion of profits to organizations like the Northeast Farmers of Color Land Trust and Wabanaki REACH. 

Using their excellent grassroots marketing strategies and persuasive skills, young activists raised $250 from their seed sale. With these funds, the club purchased a large garden bed for residents of nearby Wedgewood Towers, a government-assisted housing facility for seniors and those with disabilities. The bed was installed at a height intended to accommodate all and, once in place, was filled with soil donated by The Compost Company thanks to USN Parent Clay Ezell. On Monday, April 19, the club traveled to Wedgewood Towers to get to work. Along with Wedgewood Towers residents, students dug into the dirt to plant okra, peppers, and tomatoes grown from the same seeds they sold to raise funds for the project. 

“It was fun to build intergenerational relationships,” Elliott Karpinos ’31 shared. “One of the residents is blind, and he told me about how he loves painting while we worked.” 

Wedgewood Towers residents will be able to enjoy the fruits (and vegetables) of their labor, and the Young Activist Club plans to make regular visits to work in the garden alongside their Edgehill neighbors. Additionally, students hope to continue fundraising to add more beds, providing Wedgewood Towers residents with more easily accessible, fresh produce options. 

“It was good to meet new people while also giving back to our Earth,” Elliott continued. 

“I would definitely go back to plant more,” Lucas added. “I really like helping people.” 

Young Activist Club was started during the fall 2020 semester as an After School program to provide students in grades K-4 with age-appropriate opportunities to participate in civic engagement and social justice advocacy. The club emphasizes student-led initiatives challenging its members to think critically and find empowering solutions for affecting change. Now in its third year, other club activities have included letter writing to representatives, organizing a meatless Monday in Sperling Cafeteria, leading conversations in community meetings around the need for racial restorative justice, and conducting collection drives to provide people experiencing homelessness with necessities. In December 2022, they designed and sold holiday cards to support LGBTQ+ youth as well as immigrants new to Nashville. 
Back

More USN News

List of 3 news stories.

Archive

Contact

Edgehill Campus
2000 Edgehill Ave.
Nashville, TN 37212

Phone:  615-321-8000
Fax:       615-321-0889 
Email:    info@usn.org

River Campus
1200 County Hospital Road
Nashville, TN 37218

Resources

USN Mission: 
University School of Nashville models the best educational practices. In an environment that represents the cultural and ethnic composition of Metropolitan Nashville, USN fosters each student’s intellectual, artistic, and athletic potential, valuing and inspiring integrity, creative expression, a love of learning, and the pursuit of excellence.