We are hopeful to begin regularly blogging about the progress here at Coburn Cove Cooperative in the coming months. In this first year, things will be much more about outreach than revenues -- so expect some free, fantastic produce from us and stories about the wonderful young people we hope to be working with. It's all in the name of you scratching the surface of what we're all about, with the promise that some of you will like what you see and feel and dig in when we take it to a WHOLE OTHER LEVEL next year!!! :) Starting in May or June, we hope to have two or three different days and locations around Asheville where anyone in the community can come and sample what we've got growing.
Next year (2017) we aim to establish the first student-engaged, community-enriching vegetable plot for middle- and upper-grades kids in the city of Asheville. The original idea was to locate the garden at or nearby to Asheville Middle School; thus, the tentative name for the growing space is the 'Roaring Garden,' after the school's mascot, the cougars. There are very promising things on the horizon with this project -- especially given the overall goal of getting young people envisioning and directly carrying out a uniquely tangible and community-uplifting enterprise. We strongly believe it is imperative to get young people to reconnect with real food, even more simply to give them an honest chance to discover the profound joy in shepherding an amazing diversity of sustenance-providing plant life. This being said, I am so grateful that the idea of a student-run vegetable garden has found fertile ground in the minds of fellow teachers at the middle school, the City of Asheville itself, and the Asheville City Schools Foundation (ACSF).
Overall, we are very excited for the build-up and launch of our community-active, member-cooperative farm over the next year or so. You should know that we're not just itchin' to sprout, grow and find a market for the goods we are able to make out here in Candler... the high-impact veggie gardening with students, collaborating teachers and supportive community members at the city middle school is just as big a part of our vision. Hopefully we can succeed in both putting great food at your fingertips AND putting the 'Roaring Garden' into the minds of many a citizen of Asheville -- as a place where minds, hearts, and plants of all ages learn from and nourish one another =)
Stay tuned!
Matthew, Dorothea, Josie and Yanusz of CCC (aka the 'Triple C' aka Coburn Cove Cooperative Farmstead)
PS -- The Roaring Garden has its own blog, which will focus on the work we are doing with Asheville Middle School teachers, students, and our community partners in and around the city. It can be found at: roaringgarden.blogspot.com
