ROCK SPRINGS — Gregory Hager of Boy Scout Troop 4 took on an Eagle Scout project this summer that led his troop as they built a garden space for the First Congregational Church Community Garden.
That garden space is one of four gardens that the church uses to help people in Sweetwater County who are struggling with food insecurity, according to an Oct. 26 press release.
It is 8×8 and is enclosed to protect the vegetables from deer.
Hager read the plans for the garden, determined supplies needed, and enlisted help from his troop to level the ground, build raised beds and the structure surrounding them, fill the beds with good soil, and plant vegetables. In addition to scout members, Hager worked with scoutmaster Bill Ruoff, and garden committee members Linden Olson, Paul Legerski, and Johnny Ross.
The garden was funded with a $1,000 “Grow a Little Extra” grant from Wyoming First Lady Jennie Gordon’s project, the Wyoming Hunger Initiative. Material donations were also received from Bloedorn Lumber. The Wyoming Hunger Initiative works to end hunger in Wyoming and supports anti-hunger projects throughout Wyoming.
The Wyoming Hunger Initiative honored scoutmaster Bill Ruoff for his “commitment to end hunger in Wyoming” through his assistance to the First Congregational Church Community Garden.
Ruoff is a skilled carpenter who utilized his personal shop and mentored the scouts as they built the garden. His mentoring helped the scouts to learn carpentry skills and to see that they could play an important role in helping end hunger in Wyoming.
The community garden project has rewarded the community with “a prolific harvest” according to Kathy Garrison, community garden committee member. She said that approximately 346 pounds of vegetables have been harvested from four gardens. Tomatoes and cucumbers account for the largest portion of produce, but beans, onions, peppers, beets, lettuce, potatoes, basil and thyme were also grown.
The church has a pantry that serves people struggling to have enough food, and fresh garden produce has been added to those meals. The garden produce has also been given to the Loaves and Fishes Soup Kitchen, Catholic Church, Food Bank of Sweetwater County, and to Sweetwater County School District No. 1 social workers for students facing hunger.
The garden committee members expressed gratitude to Hager.
“We plan for the gardens to serve our community with healthy produce for years to come,” Garrison said. “It is already making a positive difference.”
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