Politics & Government
Garden Gets Help From Clayton Extension Employees
University of Missouri Extension employees also will teach classes on gardening and nutrition throughout the year at Barack Obama Elementary School.
Staff from 's office on Thursday helped a group of roughly 80 St. Louis fifth-graders build raised vegetable gardens.
It happened from 1 to 3:15 p.m. at Barack Obama Elementary School. The Pine Law school is part of the Normandy School District.
Horticulture specialist Nathan Brandt of the MU Extension office helped out Thursday and will teach students about gardening during the school year. Nutrition program associate Terressa Clary will be teaching the students about healthy eating and nutrition during the year.
About 30 adult volunteers participated on Thursday, stated MU Extension civic communications specialist Roxanne Miller in an email. The students worked hard despite temperatures in the low 100s. Dr. Stanton Lawrence, superintendent of Normandy schools, was on hand to observe the work, as was at least one member of the district's Board of Education.
The project is part of the extension's Eating From the Garden program, which "helps kids improve their eating habits by giving them a green thumb," the extension's website states.
Other partners on the project are Beyond Housing, Gateway Greening, the Normandy School District, Lincoln University Extension, The Sierra Club and Wayside Community Garden. Express Scripts employees also provided assistance Thursday.
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