Established this year, the Gardens for Good Club is a philanthropic club that grows plants at Foran and donates them. The club is run by Ms. Callie Jackson and senior Maddie Babcock, and meets weekly on Tuesdays right after school in room 401.

 Jackson says, “If you love plants, if you love the environment, if you just want to hang out with some people and maybe learn to forage, it’s a good place to come.”
At the meetings, the members have been building garden beds. With these beds, they will plant crops that, once they grow, will be donated to the Giving Table, another Foran club that donates food to non-profit organizations, such as the Beth-El Center. They will make the plants into meals and donate them to these places.

Another objective of the club is to help beautify parts of Foran, like the front of the school, by planting flora. This will help promote a more diverse and healthy ecosystem around the school.

Over the winter, many plants will not grow, but Jackson hopes to be able to educate members about plants, like the difference between native and invasive species, or the various types of wildflowers. She also wants to plant some winter-friendly crops, including radishes.

Babcock states that growing up, she really enjoyed gardening with her family and spending time outdoors, but that it wasn’t until her Junior year that she connected that with her passion for advocacy. “Speaking out for people who don’t have a voice is so important, especially when it concerns our environment, because they’re the ones that we take advantage of the most, and they never, ever have a say in how we treat them.”

The club is also Babcock’s Gold Award project, which is an award given to high school-aged Girl Scouts in recognition of building something sustainable that positively impacts their community. Babcock notes that a lot of people don’t know how to grow their own food, primarily due to a shift in interests from outdoors to technology. She believes that this is a necessary skill that they teach through Gardens for Good.

Junior Maggie Bredbeck, co-founder, says, “I decided to join Gardens for Good because I love gardening and learning about native flora, and I knew the people involved with the club. I’m excited to work with them to make a positive impact at our school and in the community.”