I went home with a full heart today after volunteering at the Carpenter Art Garden.
When I arrived just before three, I met with Erin, the program coordinator. Erin she showed me around the property where every Tuesday, volunteers work with approximately 40 children in the Binghampton neighborhood. She explained the success the program has seen with the children, and the community as a whole. When school lets out for the day, children flood the small garden space to work on permanent art installations, craft projects, and tending to the garden boxes. As the program grew with students at Cornerstone Preparatory and Lester Middle School, parents began to take more interest in the program.
In the two years of the program, the Carpenter Garden has expanded to four lots including gardens, picnic tables for crafts, a stage for performing, outdoor mosaic sculptures, and “the purple house”. The purple house is new, and students are eager to see the interior. As an investment for the program, the children participated in the fundraising by selling their art. Erin led me over to the students’ best seller: a large plywood heart with the Memphis Grizzlies’ logo. In my short time in Memphis, this was a familiar sight: my next door neighbor proudly sports the Memphis Grizzlies heart in their front yard.
The Carpenter Art Garden
As a camp counselor for over six summers, my role today of overseeing one of the craft stations at the garden came naturally. There were four activities to choose from, in addition to snack, free reading and general play on the grounds. While I offered loose guidance to the craft, I had the chance to talk to a lot of children about their participation in the art garden. A reoccurring theme was the appreciation of having an ‘art class’. This is unlike any class offered in their standard school day, so students look forward to a chance to create something on Tuesdays after school.
Making signs for the growing garden.
As parents filtered in at the end of the day, many sat down at a picnic table and worked on a craft with their child. A few children lingered as we cleaned up, explaining they lived near the garden so they liked to stay as late as they could. “Maybe since I’m good at this and I’m young, I could keep painting when I’m older?” one student proposed, looking up from her garden project very unsure. I assured her that anything was possible.
Our final work!
Carpenter Art Garden is a place for growth and rejuvenation. Watching children ease in to their projects at the end of the school day, anyone can identify the confidence cultivated in this unique environment. I feel privileged to have been able to work with the children and faithful volunteers at The Carpenter Art Garden so early in my odyssey.
Thank you for reading! Like what you read? Megan Banaszek is searching for a job in the non-profit sector where she can use her Family Services degree and public service experience to make a positive impact in Memphis. …. Contact her at meganbanaszek0123@gmail.com or jobleads@volunteerodyssey.com.
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