For years, this lot sat empty on the corner of 13th and C Streets in Washington, D.C.

The lot was transformed into the 13th Street Community Park and Garden which opened to the public in May 2011.

In 2007, Capitol Hill neighbors Richard Lukas, Eric Schwalb and Christy Schwalb embarked on an effort to convert a vacant lot on their street into a community park and garden.  The lot was part of Kentucky Courts, a public housing complex in Washington, D.C. owned by the District of Columbia Housing Authority.  The only item on the site was a garbage dumpster which was used by Kentucky Courts residents.  After building community support for the project, Richard, Eric and Christy approached the D.C. Housing Authority with their idea.  The D.C. Housing Authority embraced the concept and agreed to provide funding for the project.  It would be another four years before the park and garden was built.  A Garden Grows at 13th and C Streets, the bonus film in A Community of Gardeners DVD, shows how neighborhood residents and D.C. government officials worked together and overcame funding challenges to design and build the 13th Street Community Park and Garden.

Audience members listen to the panel discussion after the film screening.

A screening of A Community of Gardeners at Busboys and Poets drew a full house on October 24.  The screening was one of thousands of events which took place throughout the country in celebration of Food Day, a national day which promotes healthy eating, access to fresh food and sustainable food production.  It was followed by a panel discussion moderated by Marsha Weiner of Food Muse Media with filmmaker Cintia Cabib, five D.C. community gardeners, and Alice Kamps, the curator of the National Archives exhibit, “What’s Cooking, Uncle Sam?.”  Kealy Rudersdorf and Nicolás Troncoso, volunteers at the Marion Street Garden, talked about their work teaching kids how to plant, harvest and cook fresh vegetables and herbs grown at the garden.  Kealy previously spent more than a year in Costa Rica working at a family-run organic chocolate farm.  Pat Ragland and her teenage son CJ shared their experiences participating in the Washington Youth Garden’s “Growing Food…Growing Together” program for the last nine years.  CJ has grown to love vegetables and gardening and plans to continue visiting the Washington Youth Garden after he begins college next year.  Jeremiah Lowery, a program fellow at Common Good City Farm, discussed how the farm is providing access to fresh, healthy food to low-income D.C. residents and teaching gardening skills to the local community.  Audience members and panelists also discussed land tenure issues, expanding community gardens in areas considered food deserts, and the resources available for individuals who want to start their own community garden.

(l. to r.) Cintia Cabib, Joyce Smith, Lewis Sharpe, Miriam Avins, and Coleen McCarty participate in the post-film discussion.

Filmmaker Cintia Cabib and her documentary A Community of Gardeners traveled to Baltimore on September 14 for a screening at the Creative Alliance.  Baltimore’s urban garden scene is flourishing.  The city has thousands of vacant lots, many of which have been transformed into community gardens.  A rich panel of Baltimore’s community gardeners participated in the post-film discussion.  Miriam Avins, the founder of Baltimore Green Space, described her organization’s work to preserve and protect community gardens so that they are not endangered by redevelopment.  Lewis Sharpe of the Duncan Street Miracle Garden shared how he is enjoying his retirement years taking care of the community garden in his neighborhood.  Joyce Smith, the Executive Director of Operation Reachout Southwest and the recipient of an Open Society Institute Fellowship, discussed her efforts to establish a community garden in southwest Baltimore to give community residents access to fresh food.  Coleen McCarty spoke about her work as the coordinator of City Farms which operates community gardens in several Baltimore city parks.  Many audience members talked about their own community gardening programs, including the preservation efforts at Mothers’ Garden and the Power in Dirt initiative to transform vacant lots into vibrant green spaces.