SOOOOO….. 3 stops an hour of searching later I have found somewhere with POWER and INTERNET! Yes the power is out in most of my county and it is pouring down the rain!

But there are much bigger problems RISING in West Virginia right now. The next county over is missing sections of road due to flood waters. Their hospital is also mostly closed due to a damaged structure!
Webster rain

On a lighter note here’s what going GREAT in our county!

Grow Appalachia in our community has became a buzz of excitement. It has become a learning opportunity and shared experience to all involved.

In our community garden the gardeners have taken on the project at full swing. With 9 personal plots, one large community/ multifamily section, a very large potato patch, 2 kids gardens, and one corn and pumpkin patch for the day care kids to sell at the farmers market. There is green everywhere!

kids garden 2
We are in the process of building the large fence around the garden for deer protection. This project will be completed as soon as the last 4 post holes drain! Community members have pulled together making this large project more than possible.

In an area with a lot of down time in the mid week lull of the resort industry, community members have began to gather at the gardens for fun. Families have spent their evenings with their kids caring for the gardens as an alternative to watching TV indoors. The new greeting among fellow gardeners is now, ‘Hey your garden looks great!’ a much preferred alternative to, ‘what’s up?’

kids gardening
Local businesses in the area are thrilled there is a pull to the area. By creating an epicenter of outdoor activity more people are being drawn out of their houses and into the local surroundings, such as local restaurants and coffee shops. This also helps our community look like a place people want to be, helping the many realtor business in the immediate area of the gardens. We have created community appeal.

The home gardeners have also shows great results. Many of the home gardeners have kids that have been able to help in their own gardens. Some of them have been able to turn them into a 4-H project and gain even more experience and use from their gardens. A lot of the home gardeners are also sharing their harvest and new knowledge with friends and neighbors expanding our grow family.

Linwood Community Day Care kids have been harvesting and selling the produce that is growing in their natural play areas. They will be using the funds to better their learning environment. Staring at such a young age in the garden and helping raise money for their personal education, will help make these young people flourish in our community. What better way to teach self sustaining methods than gardening.

Gutter Garden

Gutter Garden

The Linwood Community Day Care and Linwood Alive have been approved for a Try This West Virginia Grant. With the Grant we will purchase an outdoor commercial grill and hand wash stations. With these items we will have outdoor cooking and tastings at the farmers market and other events. The produce we will use will be provided by our Grow Appalachia gardens and the farmers at the farmers markets. This will create an opportunity to show people how to cook health how great fresh can taste!

From the new community office (Starbucks) have a good day!

 starbucks