Feeding the Heart, Mind, and Community

A fruitful garden requires a few simple yet essential elements—seeds, soil, sun, and water. At the Baden Community Vegetable Garden, it also takes committed, creative community members to help the garden flourish, strengthening the neighborhood with fresh, nutritious food and a common purpose rooted in healthy fellowship.

SEEDING A GARDEN
The Foundation for Barnes-Jewish Hospital awarded a community support grant to Assisi House to create the Baden Community Vegetable Garden in July 2022. Community grants from the Foundation provide seed funding to St. Louis nonprofit organizations to launch new programs to reduce health care disparities, foster strong community health care networks, promote health and wellness, or provide quality health care education.

The Baden Community Vegetable Garden is located in the City of St. Louis between Our Lady of the Holy Cross Catholic Church and Assisi House, which offers affordable housing for previously unhoused individuals and families. In a community with few options for fresh, nutrient-dense food, program organizers prioritized growing healthy food and creating a community gathering place where all are welcome.

“We wanted a community garden for the people to have something to do that’s constructive and to provide them with things that they may want to grow and eat,” says Gloria Gooden, a Baden resident since 1972 and owner of Gooden and Daughter Plumbing Contractors. “My hope is that the garden becomes a whole community project.”