Kitchen gardens can feed people and beautify places, but they can also offer a chance at redemption as is the case with this Rhode Island prison garden which received a Sow It Forward garden grant this spring. While I could write more on this topic, the prisoners’ voices are more profound than mine: 

“This program has allowed me to learn things that I never thought could be possible for a guy who has sold narcotics and helped to destroy communities. I intend on following up what I have learned from Kate and Vera on the streets to help give back and help in the positive development of the same communities I helped to destroy.”

“This is new for me, and I’m enjoying the opportunity to learn how to grow and maintain the garden, in a place of disarray and challenges. It gives me peace, and the ability to enjoy the fruits of my labor.”

“This garden project is the best thing I’ve been offered in many years. It has helped me with serenity; it takes me away from the prison, and brings me back to my childhood. We always had a garden in our yard.”

“In this environment, few opportunities arise where you can create or assist in the growth of new life…When I get out and rejoin society, the lessons I’ve learned in Garden Time will be a part of my life for as long as I have access to soil, seeds and sun.”

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