Make it Matter: The Producers

The 400 second grade students at Woodland Elementary West in Gages Lake, Ill., also plan, plant and harvest a vegetable garden. Last year, we donated more than 900 pounds of produce to our local food bank. Children learn about healthy eating, respect and responsibility, academics, and that they can change their community. A new children's book, Our Generous Garden, based on the Woodland garden project, was just published by Dancing Rhinoceros Press. We need more school garden across the U.S.

What a wonderful story! There need to be more farmers like Meredith and Jeremy Compton and more volunteers like Chip Paillex that are willing to donate time, money, and old-fashioned hard work! However, I must admit that I do not quite understand why the Reader's Digest Foundation would be "inspired" by the Grow-A-Row story and yet award money to another organization? Why didn't the money go directly to America's Grow-A-Row? It seems as if this organization was just as deserving of the money.