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Boys & Girls Clubs of Stoneham and Wakefield (2017) Print
2017 AARP Community Challenge Grantee
Project Category
Public places
└ Community Gardens
└ Community Gardens
The Boys Girls Clubs of Stoneham and Wakefield built an intergenerational community garden where older adults can mentor children from the clubs. They installed four garden beds, a rain barrel and a compost bin. They also provided to tools, soil, seeds and other supplies for use in the garden. Today, the Boys Girls Clubs hosts intergenerational programming at the garden, which allows older adults to teach children the value of gardening as a healthy outdoor activity.
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Anchorage, AK
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2021
Project Category: Community Gardens
Description: Many Anchorage residents who visit the city's food pantries have traditionally lacked access to fresh produce. The St. Francis House Food Pantry, run by Catholic Social Services, serves more than 10,000 people every year, distributing more than 700,000 pounds of food. To offer more fresh vegetables, CSS transformed an underused courtyard on the St. Francis House property into a community garden with 15 raised beds. Volunteers also created a mural depicting Alaska wildlife to decorate the area used for drive-through food pickup. Older adult volunteers manage the garden, which gives food pantry clients and CSS staff a space to share ideas and culture across socioeconomic, age and racial boundaries.
Pablo, MT
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2022
Project Category: Community Gardens
Description: This project created a greenhouse and an adjacent garden and supplied them with soil, cultivation materials and other necessities. The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes gave the resulting produce to meal programs and individual families.
Camp Hill, AL
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2023
Project Category: Community Gardens
Description: The project will create a rural community garden which will grow produce to improve the diets of older residents, while also providing them with a safe place to get exercise by walking.
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Chelsea, MA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2025
Project Category: Reconnect Communities
Description: La Colaborativa will transform the Route One Bridge underspace in Chelsea, MA, into a hub where older adults can access health services, nutritious food, and engage in cultural, social, and fitness activities. This project aims to combat isolation, improve health, and support housing stability.
Chelsea, MA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2019
Project Category: Public art installations
Description: With the addition of public art, a block of Division Street became a welcoming, safe passageway through downtown Chelsea for pedestrians and cyclists. Community members created 25 pieces of art to adorn the street. Artists painted three full-scale murals, including one created alongside students from a local school, as well as several mini murals. Local older adults also installed art panels. To improve mobility, the City added new sidewalks and repaved the roadway. This project spurred local artists and creatives to form a network and increased support for public art among local property owners. Project organizers say its success represents an important first step to link the heart of downtown with Chelsea's waterfront.
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