Funded Programs 2023

“We can easily say, that without the initial, and ongoing support from plant a seed, we would likely not have a garden program at all, or we would certainly not have been able to roll out such an incredible vision and execution of our amazing garden and now a habitat space as well.  Your support ignited a passion within our community and people started to notice.  As gardeners do, they share!  People started to talk, folks wished to help us with more opportunities and they shared their successes with other garden grants, such as the TD Bank Green Grant and Maxine Wilson of the Wilson Family Fund (A former teacher, trustee and mayor of Coquitlam) came for a tour and wished to donate beautiful exposed aggregate picnic tables to us by working with our programs PAC.  I truly believe all of this has been able to happen because of plant a seeds amazing vision and support.”

Karin Leathwood
Youth Worker, Encompass, Coquitlam, BC

“The garden has grown our students in wonderful ways. Small children, who will not eat a vegetable at home, eat them daily out of the garden. The wildlife that has started to enter our schoolyard makes our play space so much more interesting. From the addition of plants we began to discover worms, new insects and how many different kinds of bees there are. Not long after these arrived, birds and small animals began appearing. We began to realize how much each of these elements depends on each other. Children learned to approach dirt and the natural world with respect and care. The patience and perseverance required for growing plants is a life lesson not often experienced in our fast, instant gratification culture. There is something in nature that calms the spirit of a child and at the same time excites their wonder and curiosity. It is something our urban students would rarely get to experience if they did not have this chance at school.”

Heather Gagnier
Kindergarten Teacher, Deer Lake School, BC

“Grade 4 is immensely grateful to have our garden! It is a key element in being able to teach our Big Idea that ‘all living things sense and respond to their environment’. Students used special care planting and watering individual plants. This gave an important sense of ownership and responsibility. Through the fall and winter seasons, students were able to spend time each week carefully observing and documenting the growth of their plants. This hands-on experience has provided a positive and long lasting sense of wonder in the world that surrounds us.”

Kerri Turner
Gr. 4 Teacher, Deer Lake School

“This is what community is all about. I can now see, how working together, making connections with the land and place that you live and work, help to build a rich community, with deeper connections. The explicit connection of the earth taking care of us, and us taking care of her seems so natural in this process. Place based education lives in and with this garden. Nature as teacher and co-teacher has been very apparent. Students have been thoughtful on what this place wants and needs, and how best to support this space. The hands-on, experiential learning is sparking so much curiosity about the plants we could grow, what we can grow, and how we grow plants from seed to plant. Not only was the gardening project an authentic learning experience, it was an opportunity for mindfulness. Mindfulness happened naturally in the context of setting up the garden. I see our garden as a form of medicine. I worked with a variety of students with exceptionalities, and when their complex and challenging behaviours were elevated, I would take students to the garden and have them help clean up, water the plants, weed and tend to the area. I was astonished with how quickly they were able to self-regulate in this context.”

Johnny Zvi
Teacher & Grant Lead, Royal Heights