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Keep Macon-Bibb Beautiful (2024) Print
2024 AARP Community Challenge Grantee
Project Category
Public places
└ Community Gardens
└ Community Gardens
Fort Hill faced food insecurity and lacked green spaces, leaving older adults with few options for fresh produce or outdoor gathering spots. The project expanded the community garden with 10 new beds, planted shade and fruit trees, and added berry bushes. Volunteers cleared litter and installed an inspirational mural on the basketball court, transforming the park into a vibrant hub. Residents expressed hope for the neighborhood's future, and plans now include chess tournaments and exercise equipment to sustain engagement.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
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Delaware County, OH
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2021
Project Category: Community Gardens
Description: To give older adult residents of an affordable housing complex a space to gather, SourcePoint and Age-Friendly Delaware County created an accessible community garden. Volunteers installed raised beds to enable gardeners to work without needing to kneel down. Additionally, they laid an ADA-complaint crushed gravel path, added accessible benches and erected an aluminum fence around the space. Today, St. Michael's Community Garden hosts programming for gardeners and non-gardeners alike, including healthy cooking classes. Project organizers say the garden has helped combat social isolation, and senior housing residents now grow produce in their own backyard, which helps reduce their grocery bills.
St. Louis, MO
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2024
Project Category: Community Gardens
Description: North St. Louis faces severe food insecurity, leaving older adults with limited access to fresh produce and safe outdoor spaces. Urban Harvest STL grew over 1,000 pounds of food at Fresh Starts Garden, donating most to programs serving older adults. The team installed accessible raised beds and picnic tables and repaired a generator to help power tools, making gardening easier for those with mobility challenges. Volunteers and apprentices age 50-plus joined in, and the season ended with a celebration of 100 community members. The garden manager said, "Gardening is very rewarding... The garden benefits the whole community because they get to see something positive going on."
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Sheridan, WY
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2024
Project Category: Community Gardens
Description: Veterans at the Sheridan VA struggled to access a therapeutic garden because uneven terrain and heat made gardening unsafe for those with mobility challenges. The project installed more than 500 feet of ADA-compliant concrete paths, raised beds at accessible heights and a retractable shade system. Volunteers and VA staff also hosted workshops and a garden symposium to engage veterans. These upgrades created a fully accessible space that supports physical activity, mental health and food security, ensuring older veterans can garden safely for years to come. One participant, who is a veteran, said that he didn't realize how much he would love gardening, and now has a passion for it.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Nearby AARP Community Challenge Projects
Macon-Bibb, GA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2025
Project Category: Public space activation
Description: This project will transform a vacant lot near public transit into Spirit of Macon Park, a safe, attractive, multi-purpose green space. The park will offer wellness programs and activities.
Macon, GA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2023
Project Category: Public safety interventions
Description: Uneven sidewalks and overgrown paths near two Macon schools made walking unsafe for students and older adults. The Path to Success project cleared 25 streets, removed over 100 bags of debris and launched a Walking School Bus for more than 100 children. Older adults joined walk audits and served as porch watchers, creating safer routes and stronger community ties. "It inspires school attendance and safety in our most vulnerable neighborhoods," said the project manager. The effort also influenced local violence prevention planning and sparked interest from other schools, positioning the program as a model for neighborhood safety.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
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