Connecting Communities

WHO WE ARE

At the Growing Food Growing Health and Growing Food Growing Hope gardens in Lawrence, Kansas, we teach students how to grow food while taking care of the Earth, to work as members of a team, and to facilitate community healing and engagement among those who are recovering from addiction and those who are food insecure.

Get to know our gardeners and our work in the community.

Follow us on Instagram to stay updated with our latest news

Productive day at the Growing Food Growing Hope Garden at First Step. Taisha and Maggie take on the big job of washing all the potatoes we harvested earlier this week; Elise creates a permanent garden map; every workday starts with the chalk board; z

At the Edgewood Free Market right now, until noon - or we run out. 1600 Haskell.

Working at the Growing Food Growing Hope garden at First Step. Harvesting potatoes, onions, and the first tomatoes for the kitchen there. Also some harvesting today for the Free Market at Edgewood tomorrow. Small crew of Maggie, Maebelle and Elise. T

Good day at the Growing Food Growing Health garden at West Middle School. Harvested lots of potatoes for our Free Market at Edgewood. Ruby searches in the soil for hidden treasures. Marianne, board member and treasurer for our non profit, visited and

Our Free Market at Edgewood was this morning and these beauties were among the many veggies we shared with our community. We are making connections, meeting some wonderful people, and, hopefully, nourishing a little corner of our world with produce g

Our students work carefully and tirelessly to do their part helping to feed our community. This week’s Free Market at Edgewood will feature this beautiful Swiss chard and yummy new potatoes. We’ll also have cabbage, kale, mustard greens,

A steamy morning working in the Growing Food Growing Hope garden at First Step. We started harvesting some beautiful spuds, which was a lot more fun than harvesting weeds! We brought lettuce to the First Step kitchen and will share some of the potato

A windy day for our Free Market at Edgewood but we’re here and ready to share our beautiful produce.

At the Merc Co+op right now - gooseberries from our garden at West. Make a pie or a tiny batch of jam. Sale of our produce at the coop helps support our new Free Market at Edgewood. Check out the fresh mint and dill we also delivered today.

Thank you to our Partners

We are grateful to our community partners for their support. Thank you to:

The Merc Co+op
Silver Lake Bank
Farm to Market Bread
Merchants Pub and Plate
715 Restaurant
Edie Insurance
Vinland Valley Nursery
Static Hair Salon
Mellow Fields Farm
DCCCA Lawrence
Lawrence Douglas County Housing Authority
Lawrence Public Schools

Thank you for your support

We accomplish this work with the help of our talented Student Gardeners, dedicated staff, and our extended community. Thank you for your support.

Donate today

WHAT WE DO

THE CMEF MISSION

The mission of Community Mercantile Education Foundation is to nourish and inspire personal well being, strengthen community connections, and support sustainable, local food systems.

We fulfill our mission by creating beautiful and productive gardens, developing youth leaders, and using food as a transformative path to health.

WHERE WE WORK