Cooking Healthy
The Cooking Healthy Program, usually provided on a quarterly basis features topic-focused classes throughout the calendar year. From passed down traditional dishes to food favorites, each class offers participants the opportunity to explore innovative ways of preparing healthy foods while learning the origins and nutritional value of freshly-grown, plant-based ingredients.
Sowing & Reaping
This is a garden program focused on the physical components of the garden and how to sow, care, and reap the plants. In addition to the 'tending-the-garden' volunteer opportunities--usually Saturdays--we also have Workshops throughout the spring, summer, fall and winter to support the seeds of the season, and topical garden focused projects to augment learning. For more details about the program click the button below.
Garden Education - Adult
This year-round project highlights several topical garden-to-health programs. Each class goes one step further than giving food away. These classes will empower you to feel confident you can be your own food source. You’ll learn how, when, and what foods thrive in your garden space, how to cultivate an environment that supports high-nutrition free-of-pests planting.
Garden Education - Youth
This youth-focused project highlights several topical garden-to-health programs throughout the year. These programs are designed to nurture strong connections between the living plant-based foods we grow and their unique benefits to our body, wellbeing, and life. Students learn how, when, and what foods thrive in certain environments. This program is customized to reinforce real-world in-school skill development and subjects. Special topic programs will be announced and open to the public.
Food Desert to Beauty
This project centers around growing and creating a holistic garden experience. Through a garden and nutrition lens, we are addressing the root causes to HEALTH. Beauty's Community Garden, with community partners, is developing projects focused on expanding access and education, while promoting pride of community.
Food desert communities, like Independent Heights, where Beauty's Community Garden resides, have higher rates of sugar diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, and heart disease. Do you know Why? Some of the major contributions to these results include limited access to a grocery store with fresh fruits and vegetables in the community. Often times these stores are outside of the community, resulting in many residents needing transportation to access. Food deserts also have a higher per capita of convenience stores and fast food restaurants. These establishments contribute to a diet high in salt, sugar, and processed foods.
This Food Desert to Beauty project currently has three primary areas of support:
Enrichment to Beauty's Community Garden takes place in one of 40+ food deserts in Houston alone. Our vision is to develop Beauty's Community Garden as a community space to support our wholistic vision for the garden.
The Green Seedling Magazine - A quarterly fun-filled, STEAM educational quarterly magazine for the whole family. It is the concept of Beauty's Community Garden and Community Partner PEACE through PIE.The purpose behind Green Seedling is to:
- inform, challenge and inspire you to be your own plant-based food source,
- learn about what your body needs to be healthy, and to be
- expose the reader to the emotional and physical benefits, a diet rich in fruits, veggies and herbs provides.
Each magazine builds on the previous quarterly edition, while focusing on how to care for plants sown during the season.
Sign up to get your digital copy by going to the Green Seedling tab on the Web menu or clicking here and fill out the form on the Green Seedling page.
The Green Seedling Magazine is one of the projects with partner PVAMU College of Agriculture and Human Sciences Cooperative Extension Program. This project is supported by Be Well™Acres Homes. Be Well Acres Homes is an initiative of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in collaboration with Harris Health System, Memorial Hermann Community Benefit Corporation, UTHealth School of Public Health, and more than 30 community organizations united together with residents of Acres Homes.
As part of this project, Beauty's Community Garden also contributes to the:
- creation and improvement of community gardens in schools and public spaces throughout the Acres Homes Community.
- provides garden instruction every quarter within the Acres Homes community too.
Historic & Cultural Roots
This project uses the garden and our community to celebrate, educate and explore the unique and rich history and culture of the Independent Heights district. Did you know that Independent Heights was the 1st African American Municipality in Texas?
This program focuses on events and experiences that expand our lens, with a goal to uncover true back stories, framing what we think we know today around our local history, culture, ethnicity, and the people who have contributed to our community.
Some of the events and programs under this Historic & Cultural Roots project are: Beauty's Community Garden's Annual PEACE through PIE Community Event & Fundraiser slated for Saturday, January 14, 2023. This annual event starts the fundraising campaign that ends February 28, 2023. All funds raised support Beauty's Community Garden's programs, projects and events.
Future programs slated throughout the year are: Black History Month programming in February. and Juneteenth celebration in June.