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Regenerative Roots Association (2021) Print
2021 AARP Community Challenge Grantee
Project Category
Public places
└ Community Gardens
└ Community Gardens
Nashua has a large migrant population from Zambia, Burundi and Honduras, many of were farmers in their native counties. The ReGeerative Roots Association hoped to give them the opportunity to use their skills in their new home. The organization's ReGen Roots program, which provides free community garden plots to immigrant families. To give more families the opportunity to grow culturally familiar foods, this project expanded the garden's footprint by two acres. Participants can sell any extra produce, supplementing their household income. Additionally, community garden members donate ten percent of their peak harvest to two nonprofits that combat food insecurity in Nashua.
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See More Projects Like This One
Silver Spring, MD
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2023
Project Category: Community Gardens
Description: The first season of a new community garden revealed gaps in accessibility and education for older adults and neighbors. IMPACT Silver Spring responded by offering technical assistance and hosting gardening workshops, while volunteers widened an informal path to improve access. Partnerships with local agencies strengthened the effort, creating a space for learning and connection. Plans now include drip irrigation, a food forest and produce donations, with a goal to secure funding for permanent walkways and eventually hand stewardship to the community.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Chariton, IA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2023
Project Category: Community Gardens
Description: The library sought to turn unused land into an accessible outdoor space for learning and social connection, but the site lacked features for older adults and people with mobility challenges. With grant funding, the library purchased two accessible tables and outdoor light post/charging stations for a planned sensory garden. Benches were donated, and design work began with local students and master gardeners. The plans include barrier-free entrances, a sidewalk and a storywalk to encourage engagement. These additions aim to create a welcoming space for older residents and foster intergenerational learning.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Chelsea, ME
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2023
Project Category: Community Gardens
Description: Older adults in Chelsea had few accessible spaces for social connection or healthy activities, leaving many isolated. The project transformed a schoolyard into an intergenerational garden with eight wheelchair-accessible raised beds, a convertible bench and a canopy. Residents and students planted, harvested and shared produce, which supplied the local food bank and monthly luncheons. Donations and repeat visits showed strong community engagement. Future plans include expanding raised beds and adding a permanent structure for year-round use.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Nearby AARP Community Challenge Projects
Nashua, NH
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2026
Project Category: Innovative home maintenance, repair and support services
Description: The project will install hallway handrails and upgrade a housing unit at a supportive housing site for older women. These changes will reduce the risk of falls and improve safety and accessibility throughout the building.
Dunstable, MA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2023
Project Category: Walkability
Description: With no sidewalks in its historic center, even short walks to the library required police escorts, leaving older adults and children at risk. To address this, the town led three walk audits and community meetings to map hazards and revive plans for a sidewalk linking the center to the library. The audits also identified informal paths for conversion to accessible trails and informed updated design documents for a larger network. Officials are now pursuing state funding for new connectors.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
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