Empowered Spaces Community Garden
Planting Connections, Growing Communities
This is a project that—at its roots— is meant to be created and led together.
The garden is ours to learn from as we go, building from our different knowledge, skills, and curiosities.
Mission
The Empowered Spaces Community Garden is an organic gardening cooperative dedicated to quality food access for all, embodied healing and wellness education, equitable and empowering community, and anti-racist solidarities. Through cooperative farming and community partnerships, we seek to create locally-based, environmentally sustainable, trauma-informed and justice-driven modes of connection, resiliency, and interdependence.
Read on for more information about our Community Garden, and our Collaborative Food Share Program with Jamaa Birth Village.
Join us in this mission and in creating more of the world we want to see!
As we continue to learn more about sustainable gardening, we are incorporating principles of permaculture and perennial agriculture.
This is a less-invasive, more environmentally sustainable approach that works with natural ecosystems to support our needs of living while also replenishing the earth.
We are building a “food forest”—a garden of annual and perennial vegetables, herbs, and trees that will not only feed our communities but provide a beautiful wild edible landscape of trees and shrubs for everyone to enjoy.
Our garden currently consists of 6 raised beds, 37 fruit and nut trees/bushes, a medicinal herb bed, and a tea bed.
How the Co-Op Works
1) Learn about and participate in organic urban gardening
2) Participate in community organizing and activism through locally-based partnerships and programs
3) Attend free workshops as part of our In The Garden Workshop Series in that explore integrative justice driven approaches to embodiment, mental health, and wellness, both individually and collectively
4) Participate in community in ways that recognize differentials of power and privilege, tied to differences such as race, class, gender, and sexuality
5) A basket of fresh produce to take home on garden workdays during harvest seasons
Membership in the Garden Co-Op includes:
We currently meet for garden workdays one Saturday a month, and one Sunday a month from 9:00 - 11:00am.
This season, prior to every Saturday work day we will have a yoga practice in the garden from 8:30-9:00am.
Schedule:
To join the co-op, all members will:
Sign up with a self-determined sliding-scale annual membership fee. See below for how to sign up.
Commit to contributing 4 hours of volunteer work in the garden per month (see below for details on our Collaborative Food Share Program with Jamaa).
In return, all members will receive a weekly basket of fresh produce during growing seasons.
The majority of the produce will be donated to the expectant families of color served through Jamaa Birth Village’s comprehensive Equal Access Midwifery Clinic (EAMC).
Those in a position to give more hours and/or funds are also welcome to sponsor additional baskets that go directly to families served through the EAMC in need of fresh produce.
Sign up Here
Sign up with a self-determined sliding-scale annual membership fee, or make a one-time donation to the garden.
Given that we are living within multiple intersecting systems of oppression, a sliding scale acknowledges that our access to financial capital and resources varies as a result. Based on the ways that your identity grants you access to privilege and social capital, (e.g. race, gender & sexual identity, socio-economic status, educational background, able-bodied-ness, etc.), select an annual membership fee on the scale of $5-$75.
Send in your membership fee or a donation via:
***Please note in the drop down box whether you are signing up as a garden member or making a one-time donation***
Venmo - to Kelly Caul (@EmpoweredSpaces).
Check made out to Empowered Spaces, LLC and mailed to:
7602 Big Bend Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63119.
Paypal (please note that 3% of your donation will
be deducted for service fee)
Yoga In The Garden
Join us for a free 30-minute yoga class outside in the garden with Jessie Kissinger (she/her). We'll focus on forms to prepare your body for gardening. Expect gentle movements to warm up your joints and muscles and a mindfulness practice to invite connection with the natural world. Please bring a mat or blanket that you're comfortable setting up on the grass or feel free to practice directly on the lawn!
Saturdays before our garden workdays 8:30-9:00AM
In The Garden Workshop Seriess
In The Garden are a series of workshops in the Empowered Spaces Community Garden that explore integrative justice driven approaches to embodiment, mental health, and wellness, both individually and collectively.
These workshops are free to our community garden members, and donation based to the larger community - pay what you can, if you can. 100% of all donations go to supporting the garden and our collaborative food share program with Jamaa Birth Village. Donations can be made at the workshop, or via Venmo or Paypal.
Schedule
June 15
Resonance In The Garden
Join us for Resonance In The Garden onJune 15, 9:00-11:00am with Deanna Danger (they/them). From 9:00 - 10:00 am join us for gardening in the Empowered Spaces Community Garden, and then Soak in a crystal singing bowl sound bath with Deanna Sophia Danger. Allow yourself to wander from the garden, into tune with both Deanna and the cicadas, Resonance In The Garden invites participants to relax body, mind & spirit and integrate natural reciprocity with the abundant harmonies of Mother Earth.
September 7
Painting Connection
From 9:00 - 10:00 am join us for gardening in the Empowered Spaces Community Garden, and then come and cultivate connection through community artmaking. Our time is art therapist designed and will be led by heARTful wellness founder, Renée Tate (she/they). We will be painting pavers that will live in our community garden focused on connection, empowerment, and hope for our community. Come invest in yourself and our community while engaging in creativity and present moment awareness, aspects of being well at a heART level. Genuine wellness is a practice. Let's practice together!
July 28
Botanical Meditations: building relationship with plant allies through somatic experience
Empowered Spaces community members Rachel Tate (they/her) and Brea Youngblood (she/her) (join Brea on 9/22) will provide their own version of this class with opportunity to engage with aromatics in thoughtful ways. In each 30 minute class, you will have the opportunity take in sensation with one or all plants including mint, garden sage, rosemary, or basil. This gathering invites the group to slow down and notice what is present in relationship with plant allies when we take the time to witness and feel. In this gathering you might notice feeling, emotion, or behaviors arise when mindful attention is taken to the mundane world around us. You may very well just notice how good these herbs smell! Either way, we’d love to have you and your curiosity this summer, in the garden.
Empowered Spaces community members Rachel Tate (they/her) (join Rachel on 7/28) and Brea Youngblood (she/her) will provide their own version of this class with opportunity to engage with aromatics in thoughtful ways. In each 30 minute class, you will have the opportunity take in sensation with one or all plants including mint, garden sage, rosemary, or basil. This gathering invites the group to slow down and notice what is present in relationship with plant allies when we take the time to witness and feel. In this gathering you might notice feeling, emotion, or behaviors arise when mindful attention is taken to the mundane world around us. You may very well just notice how good these herbs smell! Either way, we’d love to have you and your curiosity this summer, in the garden.
September 22
Botanical Meditations: building relationship with plant allies through somatic experience
Collaborative Food Share Program
at Jamaa Birth Village and Empowered Spaces
We are so thrilled to share with you the collaboration between Jamaa Birth Village in Ferguson and Empowered Spaces--a partnership we've been working on for some time. Tru Kellman, the Founder and Executive Director, is doing transformational work in St. Louis, and is a leader in combating racial and health inequities.
Our mission is to provide accessible organic produce and herbs to the expectant clients and families of color served through Jamaa's Equal Access Midwifery Clinic (EAMC), as well as to the wider community that comes together through this partnership. The EAMC provides wrap-around perinatal care to low-income expectant women and families of color in North City.
Jamaa Birth Village is a 501c3 non-profit Midwifery, Doula & Maternal Health organization located in Ferguson, Missouri and serving the greater St. Louis metro area.
Since 2015 we have supported over 400 families with perinatal care. Our goal is to lower the infant and maternal mortality/morbidity rates that are significantly higher for African-American women.
Learn more about Jamaa Birth Village and how you can support their work here.
Deep Gratitude
Thank you to our Community Partner
We are deeply grateful to Denise DeGhelder and our community partner Garden Heights Nursery for donation seedlings and plant starters to our garden.
Thank you to Our Garden Bed Sponsors
Holly Strelow Counseling
Sponsor of a Red Cedar Raised Bed plus Supplies
Doulas of Greater St. Louis
Sponsor of a Red Cedar Raised Bed plus Supplies
Stephanie Dunn and Amy Strothcamp
Sponsor of a Raised Cedar Bed
Becky Mulvihill McKenna, Ph.D., LMFT, LCSW
Sponsor of a Raised Cedar Bed
Sponsor of a Raised Cedar Bed by an Anonymous Donor
Thank You to Our Orchard Sponsors
Neil & Mary Kiesel
Sponsor of 1 Almond Tree
Cindy Heidenry, MSW, LCSW
Sponsor of 1 Almond Tree
Carol Devanny
Sponsor of 2 Paw Paw Trees
Kelly Storck
Sponsor of 1 Raspberry Bush
Dottie and Colton Coriell
Sponsor of 4 Persimmon Trees
Denise, Jen and Jason from Rolling Ridge Nursery
Sponsor of 3 Clove Currants
Anu French
Sponsor of Bush Cherries
Maizie Ellingsen
Sponsor of 2 Apple Trees
Everett Ellingsen
Sponsor of 9 Raspberry Bushes
Jeff & Linda Caul
Sponsor of 2 Asian Pear Trees
Oasis Counseling Services
Sponsor of 1 Almond Tree
Jeni Schilpzand
Sponsor of 2 Clove Currants
This garden is made possible and supported by Kelly Caul, Founding Director of Empowered Spaces, and the Empowered Spaces Team. Thank you also to Gateway Greening, who provided the initial grant and infrastructure for the garden.
Thank you to Amy Knox - our Community Garden Manager!
A huge thank you to Sarika Talve-Goodman! The birth of this garden would not have happened without her. Sarika Talve-Goodman is at the beginning of deeper learning about community gardening and permaculture. This process is supported by the mentorship of Karen Flotte, who leads the Mitzvah Farm at Central Reform Congregation.
