Madison Elementary School’s Garden Club
Submitted by Jaclyn Basso
Madison School Garden Club is an after-school club at Madison Elementary School that helps students learn how to plant, nourish, and grow vegetables. The members of the Garden Club along with their advisors have taken it a step further by playing a vital role in the community.
Karen Lewis, one of the founders of the Madison School Garden Club, initiated a relationship with the Divine Mercy Kitchen and Pantry. This is a food pantry that is accessible to those in need in the Annex Build of the Divine Mercy parish on Central Avenue in Rahway. Mrs. Lewis and the Garden Club have donated the fresh produce that they have grown through the Garden Club. This enables Joanne Reinhart of the Divine Mercy Kitchen and Pantry to supply those in need with fresh produce every Sunday during the growing season.
Reinhart states that “This is very beneficial to those with lower incomes because of the relatively high cost of fresh produce, which makes it cost prohibitive.” It allows those in need to have access to nutritionally dense produce.
In addition, members of the Garden Club have now taken their learning a step further by learning how to contribute to the community by providing healthy food to those people that are in need of good nutrition. To expand on the donation of food, the Garden Club has also donated socks with the help of Madison School’s Kindergarten and First Grade classes. The Madison School Garden Club is making a positive impact on the community of Rahway as well as the Madison School Community.
According to Lewis, “The students enjoy working in the garden and are very happy that they are becoming important members of the community.”
