Sponsored Institutions - Stories

By Will Searcy
Director of Marketing and Communications, Rosarian Academy

February 4, 2022, West Palm Beach, Florida – Elementary students at Rosarian Academy harvested organic tomatoes, cucumbers, green onions, mint, mustard greens, and radishes from the school’s garden on February 2, 2022, and donated them to benefit people of Palm Beach County who are homeless. 

Elissa Gonzalez-Davis, right, helps David Zhu in the garden. Photo Courtesy of Marketing and Communications, Rosarian Academy

Rosarian Academy has partnered with Fresh Rx to grow vegetables in garden boxes on the school’s campus. Fresh Rx is an organization that teaches children how to grow food with organic practices that focus on soil quality, which will produce more nutrient-dense foods. 

Elissa Gonzalez-Davis of Fresh Rx and Mildred Acosta and Cassie Klein of Rosarian Academy led the school’s program in which Rosarian Academy students in first through sixth grades participate in an outdoor science class in the garden at least once a week. They learn about the life cycle of plants, make connections between their food and health, gain knowledge in gardening best practices, and even get to harvest their own vegetables.

Once harvested, Rosarian Academy has partnered with The Lord’s Place to donate the fresh, organic produce to Joshua’s Deli, a deli and catering business that is a part of The Lord’s Place’s Culinary Transitional Work Experience Program. This program gives people who were formerly homeless a culinary experience to help them transition into the workforce. 

Through the Rosarian Academy gardening project, students have lived out the school’s mission of service and community while also incorporating hands-on educational experience and instilling an appreciation for and sense of the importance of nature and the environment. Thanks to the partnerships with Fresh Rx and The Lord’s Place, the fruits of the students’ learning are also benefitting those in need within the community.

Feature photo: Working in the garden are, from left, Tripp Searcy, Gracie Hude, Mary Grace Hansen, Tilly Ward, and Stella Mallon. Photo Courtesy of Marketing and Communications, Rosarian Academy