Beech Hill Elementary School Gardens

We are beyond excited to partner with Summerville Family YMCA and Katie's Krops to support the Free & Fresh Fridge Program! A huge thanks to The Hershey Company and Youth Service America for awarding us the Hershey's Heartwarming Heroes Grant that allowed this project to move forward!

Summerville YMCA partners to launch free community fridge program SUMMERVILLE — A new effort to expand access to healthy food in Summerville will debut June 22 with the launch of a community-based “Free & Fresh Program” at the Downtown Summerville YMCA.

We DID it!!! Today we harvested 27 pounds of produce bringing our yearlong total to 602 pounds!!!! The best part is we still have the rest of June and July to grow more delicious food for our community!

A huge thanks to Beech Hill Elementary for supporting this mission and creating a culture of care and respect for our school gardens!

We would not be so successful if it wasn't for the support of Katie's Krops who provides not only financial assistance but more importantly the educational resources that help us problem-solve in the gardens.

While our students provide incredible TLC to our gardens, the soil is definitely the magic "sauce" that helps our plants. If you haven't tried Soil³, give them a shot. You will thank us later.

Lastly, Bonnie Plants donates their incredible seedlings to our school and provide the best start to our bountiful harvest!

It takes a village, and we are so fortunate to partner with great companies and organizations that allow us to pay it forward to our community!

How does your garden grow? Any thriving garden requires good soil, sun, water, and most of all TLC - tender loving care. Katie's Krops has inspired and supported our school gardens and now, with TLC from the best students and family volunteers at Beech Hill Elementary, we are only 25 pounds away from reaching this year's harvest goal of 600 ponds of produce!
How is your garden growing this summer?

Please consider volunteering whether here at our gardens, with Hearts for Summerville or somewhere close to your heart!

This week, I want to talk about something that has shaped my life in ways I never could have imagined: volunteerism.

Over the years, I've seen firsthand how serving others builds confidence, compassion, leadership, and purpose. It teaches us to look beyond ourselves and recognize that even the smallest act of kindness can have a ripple effect that reaches farther than we ever know.

For children especially, volunteering can be life-changing. When young people are given the opportunity to serve, they discover that they have the power to make a difference. They learn responsibility, empathy, teamwork, and the incredible feeling that comes from helping someone else. These are lessons that can't be taught in a classroom alone—they are learned through experience.

Volunteerism has shaped who I am today. It has introduced me to incredible people, opened doors I never expected, and given me a deeper understanding of the challenges many families face. Most importantly, it has shown me that one person truly can make a difference.

Unfortunately, we're seeing a shift away from volunteerism in many communities. Organizations that provide food, shelter, education, and support for those in need are struggling to find enough volunteers to continue their work. When volunteerism declines, communities feel the impact. Needs go unmet. Programs shrink. Opportunities to help others are lost.

But there is good news: every one of us can be part of the solution.

This week, we're going to focus on volunteerism—the positive impact it has on the volunteer, the difference it makes in our communities, and the many ways people of all ages can get involved. Whether it's an hour a month or several hours a week, every act of service matters. We will highlight some of our partner organizations and how you can share your time and talents with them to make Summerville a strong community.

My ask is simple: please share these posts far and wide. If together we can inspire even a handful of new people to volunteer, lives will be changed. The lives of those being served—and the lives of those who choose to serve.

Because volunteering isn't just about giving back.

It's about growing, learning, connecting, and becoming the kind of person who helps make the world a little brighter.

I hope you'll join us this week as we celebrate the power of service. ❤️

This is our first week of school being out but our gardens still need TLC! We are so lucky to have veteran garden help for our first week of summer. The Broughers know their way around a garden and Ms. Kemble got the chance to harvest the very produce that she brings out to the community!

Some of our former Beacons came back at the end of the year to help harvest and discover a little friend in the garden! Our school gardens are bursting with produce and other exciting things! We appreciate the support from Katie's Krops and the best plants from Bonnie Plants!

This past week our 4K students harvested from their own garden and we added produce from our other gardens to create a farmers market as part of their graduation festivities! Thank you to Katie's Krops and Bonnie Plants for supporting our gardens and our students!

Ms. Kuskey's class toured the garden last week to wrap up their Botany lesson. They also helped with the next round of plants for our gardens by planting seeds. They learned that by soaking the seeds, their outer hard shell will soften making it easier for the seed to sprout.

We need your help for just a few hours this Saturday getting our school gardens ready for the summer. Please check out our Sign Up Genius and see if you and your student can come lend a hand.

Garden Workday - Prepping for Summer The gardens need some extra hands this Saturday to get them ready for summer! Please review the available slots below and click on the button to sign up. We encourage student volunteers and ask them to bring a parent to help! Thank you!

Our Student Grant Leadership Team shared our grant project at Beech Hill Elementary's Spring Fling this past week! Students at Beech Hill, along with their family's support, are invited to start their own home garden or expand a current one with seeds that we will provide. In exchange, they are asked to share their garden's progress with us and donate any extra produce back to our community especially those in need.
If you have a student who is at another school, please reach out to Ms. Haugh at [email protected] for information on how they can continue Katie's Krops mission to end food insecurity in our community.
Youth Service America
The Hershey Company
MUSC Boeing Center for Children's Wellness