Green Space becomes Caring Space: Church Health Community Garden

The Memphis Garden Club (MGC) will be using the Founders Fund grant for the expansion and enhancement of the Church Health Community Garden (CHCG) through the inclusion of a multipurpose pavilion. 

The pavilion will offer space for workshops, lectures, group activities, and communal gatherings. The versatile structure will allow the community to host a variety of events throughout the year. Memphis Garden Club’s partnership with Church Health will facilitate wellness programs such as yoga, physical therapy, and occupational therapy within the pavilion's serene ambiance. The pavilion will also extend Crosstown High School’s curriculum outdoors, providing a dynamic learning environment for subjects such as biology, environmental science, art and nutrition. Students will actively participate in garden seasonal installations, maintenance and hands-on education. 

“Green space becomes Caring space: Church Health Community Garden," encapsulates the spirit of GCA's mission as well as to promote holistic well-being through the benefits of gardening and nature. 

As a faith-based health care not-for-profit, Church Health believes in caring for one another as each of us would like to be cared for.It is for this reason that Church Health commits every day to making the highest quality health care accessible to more Memphians - especially those facing social and economic challenges - so everyone can live their lives with dignity, vitality and joy. Today with the support of their partners, volunteers and donors, Church Health conducts an average of 60,000 patient visits a year in Memphis and serves as a model for countless communities across the nation.

Since the inception of the Church Health Community Garden in 2016, Memphis Garden Club members have been deeply entrenched in its development and progress to date. Club members are dedicated to the project onsite as well as in meetings. These include planning with landscape architects and installers, developmental concepts with the administration of Crosstown, Crosstown High School and Church Health. The club's ongoing support is highlighted by means of MGC funding as well as the "Garden Diggers” commitment to garden's overall health through weeding, pruning, soil conditions, installations, irrigation oversight, harvesting, education, workshops, class instruction and more. 

MGC will plan revenue generation strategies to ensure the ongoing maintenance and operation of the wellness hub beyond the grant period.