6th Annual Summer of Giving highlights garden project

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – Our 6th annual Summer of Giving with Besa gets started next week and we want you to be a part of it.

As always, we will highlight an organization, team Besa will arrange the volunteer opportunity and then we will come together to help the community. This year we are starting with Columbus Early Learning Centers and their annual garden project.

"We work with kids six weeks to five years old. So, the younger kids are really just kind of playing in the dirt, but our preschoolers really do have a great understanding of how we grow vegetables and how often do they need watered." Gina Ginn, Chief Executive Officer Columbus Early Learning Centers "They love to help with watering and play in the water...And then they really get to see from start to finish what happens."

Many of the children at the center live in an apartment or a row house so garden space at home is limited.

"It's really helping them to have lots of different experiences that they might not otherwise have."

Of course, a garden of any size takes a lot of work and without the help of volunteers this project wouldn't have been possible.

"For so many of the things that we do without the community and their participation, and what we do every day, helping us to maintain the garden or helping to maintain the facilities, there's just no possible way to do it without volunteers. The expense to the organization would be so great."

 So, on Saturday May 27th from 9am to 10:30 a.m. the NBC4 team along with volunteers from Besa will help prepare the CELC garden for the season. No gardening experience is needed and you can sign up now at  https://impact.besa.org/projects/439