ANNUAL REPORT FY2017DREW HARRISON
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
759 KING STREET SUITE A
CHARLESTON, SC 29403
843.714.1350
LETTER FROM EXECUTIVE DIRECTORGreen Heart Buddies,
Earlier this year, I was invited
to attend a dinner party in a
private home hosted by the
Transformation Table. And the
idea of these dinners is simple
— bring together a group of
strangers from different
backgrounds, ethnicities,
genders, religions and so on —
and enjoy a delicious meal
together while engaging in
thoughtful conversation. The
idea is a beautiful one, but
unfortunately in this day and
age, happens less and less.
Luckily for us, that night we
were wined and dined by the
amazingly talented chef, BJ
Dennis, whose poetic
description of the life, soul and
heritage of his dishes broke all
the ice and was the catalyst for
amazing table conversation.
The Green Heart Project was
founded on the principle of
respect - the feeling of deep
admiration, for our food, our
environment, our community,
and most importantly
ourselves. And the process of
growing, eating & celebrating
food, together, we can connect
people and build community
while teaching these values to
the future leaders of our
community, our youth.
Reflecting on our 7th year in
existence, its been amazing to
see and be a part of the
community we have grown
here in Charleston. Our garden
programs have been a platform
for education, celebrating
healthy food and connecting
people — all through our
common denominator. Food.
The group shared nostalgic
food memories that defined
who we were. We talked,
listened, and all gained
perspective and understanding
— all while tasting amazing,
local, seasonal, fresh dishes.
The night was magical. And
for me, confirmed that food is
and always will be, the
common denominator that
unites us as humans. Food
nourishes our bodies and keeps
us healthy. It connects us to our
time and location — giving rise
to our cultures and traditions to
pass to future generations. It
makes us value and appreciate
what our lands can provide to
our communities through the
seasons. And sharing food is
the best way to create
community that crosses all
boundaries.
We’ve grown our programs
into new schools, cultivating
more students, donors &
volunteers than ever before.
And we’ve dug deeper into our
programs, ensuring that our
curriculum is deeply rooted in
our mission. I’m excited to
share all that we’ve
accomplished this year in the
pages to follow, all of which
could not have happened
without our amazing Green
Heart Community.
RESPECT,
Drew Harrison
Executive Director 01
MISSION STATEMENT
The Green Heart Project builds garden-
based experiential learning projects to
educate students, connect people &
cultivate community through growing,
eating and celebrating food. 02
WHAT WE DO…
We Grow Minds. Our garden projects serve as outdoor classrooms to inspire our
students to eat healthy while connecting classroom curriculum to
hands-on, experiential learning.
We Grow Community. Our garden projects provide an opportunity for the community to get
involved, connect and give back through volunteer mentorship.
We Grow Food. We grow fruits & vegetables year-round to be tasted, shared and
celebrated.
We Grow Gardens. We build urban farms & school gardens that are sustained through
a collective effort of students, volunteers & the community.
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WHERE WE ARE…
4
1
2
2
MITCHELL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL (CCSD; Title 1) 1 In-School Program (CD - 5th Grade) 1 After-School Program (2nd-5th Grade) 2 Cooking Matters Classes
MEETING STREET ACADEMY (Independent; Serves Title 1 Students) 1 In-School Program (Kindergarten) 2 After-School Programs (3rd-5th Grade) 1 Cooking Matters Class
MEETING STREET ELEMENTARY (P3-CCSD; Title 1) 1 After-School Program (2nd-3rd)
SANDERS CLYDE (CCSD; Title 1) 2 After-School Program (2nd-3rd; 4th-5th)
SULLIVAN’S ISLAND ELEMENTARY (CCSD) 1 In-School Program (CD-5th Grade) 1 After-School Program (2nd-5th)
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WHAT WE DID…Growing Gardens.
GARDEN BUILDS • Trident United Way Day of Caring - we worked with 18
volunteers from Obviouslee Marketing to reinforce Meeting Street Academy’s garden beds at GrowFood Carolina.
• Trident United Way Day of Caring - we worked with 46 volunteers from Blackbaud to beautify Mitchell Elementary’s garden with a brick border, herb garden bed & other plantings.
• We worked with 15 volunteers from SeamonWhiteside to build 4 new raised beds for Mitchell Elementary School as seen in their newly established garden blueprint.
GARDEN DESIGNS
• We worked with landscape architects from
SeamonWhiteside to design a garden blueprint for Mitchell
Elementary’s schoolyard garden.
• We worked with landscape architects from
SeamonWhiteside to design a garden blueprint for Sanders
Clyde Elementary’s school garden.
• With SeamonWhiteside & community input, we developed
a concept for an urban farm at the Enston Homes to grow
our programming into 3 additional schools. 05
CONCEPT • The Urban Farm @ Enston Homes will
provide an opportunity for the upper peninsula community & surrounding schools to learn & connect to healthy food through urban farming.
DESIGN FACILITATION • Hosted 3 design charrettes to gather input &
feedback from residents of the Enston Homes.
• Final design presented to a community of
100+ people in partnership with the
SeamonWhiteside, The Sustainability Institute
& Taco Boy.
• Collected feedback from the broader
community through the ‘dotmocracy’ process.
PROSPECTIVE PARTNERS • City of Charleston
• Charleston Housing Authority
• American College of the Building Arts
• Charleston Parks Conservancy
PROSPECTIVE SCHOOLS • James Simons Elementary
• Charleston Catholic
• Charleston Math & Science
DOTMOCRACY
Growing Gardens.
URBAN FARM @ ENSTON HOMES
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Growing Minds.
56 Trained Green Heart Buddies
supported 1,200 students
240 In-school lessons connected
science curriculum to 7 grade levels
224 After-school lessons provided
hands-on learning in 5 school gardens
5 Farm & food education field trips
3 Cooking Matters culinary classes
10 Garden programs across 5 schools
WHAT WE DID…
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Growing Minds.
71% of our after-school students expressed
that has helped them better
understand science in the classroom.
83% of our students reported that they now
enjoy eating vegetables, and
95% now enjoy eating fruit,
thanks to .
100% of our students expressed that
they enjoy gardening with their big, volunteer
Buddies!
WHAT WE DID…
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5,000+
seeds planted
1,400 lbs.
produce harvested
650 seedlings
transplanted
84 different
fruits & vegetables
tasted
53 Varieties of
Crops Grown
All in 5 School
Gardens
Growing Food.
Crops Grown:
Basil Bush Beans Pole Beans
Beets Broccoli
Butternut Squash Cabbage Carrots Chives
Cilantro Collards
Corn Eggplant
Garlic Kale
Lemon Balm Lettuce
Mint Okra
Parsley Peas
Peppers Radish Squash
Strawberries Sunflowers Sunn Hemp
Sweet Potatoes Swiss Chard
Tomato Turnip
White Potatoes
WHAT WE DID…
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Cafeteria Servings2,750
Harvest Dinner1,126
Cooking Matters
432
Taste-Tests
2,828
Bites by the numbers…
92% of our Green Heart
Buddies are open to trying new
foods after participating in a
Green Heart Project program.
Eating & Celebrating Food.
WHAT WE DID…
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Growing Community. Growing Community.
BY THE NUMBERS:
• 2,660 hours (110 days) of
volunteering with the Green
Heart Project!
• 459 volunteers in our Green
Heart Project Community
• 70 Crop Mobs beautifying our
garden classrooms
• 41 Unique volunteer groups
came out to support our
school gardens
• 2 Harvest Dinners
Trident United Way Day of Caring
More than 66% of volunteers feel that working with the Green Heart Project improved their communication skills, and their ability to interact with people from different backgrounds.
WHAT WE DID…
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OUR HARVEST DINNER.
954 Guests!
Volunteers2%
Family Members37%
Community Members20%
School Staff11%
Donors14%
GH Students16%
The Harvest Dinner is the Green Heart Project’s end-of-year fundraiser to celebrate another season of growth connecting our students to healthy food and our community. Taking place alongside our flagship urban farm at Mitchell Elementary, our student-families, volunteers & supporters enjoy a beautiful evening with a delicious dinner sourced with local, healthy garden-fresh produce.
This year’s Harvest Dinner was brought together by
generous donations from 54 table sponsors and friends raising a record-breaking
$30,529.27 for the organization and our farm-
to-school programs. .
Special thanks to our title sponsors: .
Other2%
Hispanic1%
Caucasian41% A. American
56%
WHAT WE DID…
Click Here to
Watch the
video!
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"I love the lessons as much as the kids do - and its such a
cool way to get involved with kids in my neighborhood. This
program makes a huge difference in our future because it teaches these kids WHERE
their food comes from, the VALUE of trying new foods, and
that BEING HEALTHY can be fun. Keep it up!"
Farm-to-School programs as a whole have a say in
what our future could look like. If we provide kids
with an impactful education on the
importance of healthy, local food and what it
means for more than just their bodies, in 15 years, when they are filling up their grocery carts (or
farmers market baskets) their choices will look a lot different than what today’s
consumers’ carts do.
To me, Green Heart is one of the many
manifestations of Dr. Martin Luther King’s Beloved
Community - his global vision in which all people can share
in the wealth of the earth. Without a range of colors,
herbs, and flavors, no garden would be as full and vibrant as
our school gardens and community have grown to be!
We are really lucky to foster such an interconnected and
diverse community.
ANECDOTES
-Caleb Scruggs Bonner Leader, Green Heart Intern
-Allie Mason Program Director
I can’t wait to tell my grandparents about jackfruit! They live in
Bangladesh and promised me I could eat it when I visit them. And now I have a recipe to
teach THEM!
-Affia, 9 Student Meeting Street Elementary
-Anonymous GH Buddy
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2
IN THE NEWS…
Post & Courier - January 17, 2017 ‘New urban farm to take root’ - Front Page
“The elementary school kids who participate in the Green Heart Project’s urban farming program seem to grow up almost as quickly as the fruits and veggies they plant every school year.”
Charleston Regional Business Journal Giving Guide’16-‘17 - Front Page
edible Charleston - Inaugural Issue Spring 2017 ‘Growing the Next Generation'
Natural Awakenings - December 2016 Issue Community Spotlight
‘All of those involved with the Project share a common goal of building community through this connection to food.’
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GREEN HEART PARTNER - $25K+
WE’VE GOT NOTHING BUT #GREENHEARTGRATITUDE FOR…
• Being our founding partner. Taco Boy and their owners, Karalee Nielsen Fallert & Jerry Scheer have provided critical funding, expertise and support for the organization since Karalee founded the non-profit organization in 2009.
• Providing a slew of positive, amazing volunteers from their downtown and Folly Beach locations. We can always count on Taco Boy employees (and their friends) to support our programs and students as volunteer mentors, role models and guest chef rockstars to our small Green Heart Buddies.
• The Tempura Avocado Taco. Not only is it absolutely delicious, but it has provided critical and consistent funding for our operating budget & programs since 2009!
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WE’VE GOT NOTHING BUT #GREENHEARTGRATITUDE FOR…
• Your expertise. The team of landscape architects at SeamonWhiteside have provided countless hours and a keen eye designing 3 school gardens & now one urban farm. Their designs provide beautiful visuals to our school gardens and a long-term vision for growing our outdoor classrooms at our partnering schools.
• Your amazing group of employees & company culture. It is always a blast working with the more-than-enough, positive & fun SW+ volunteers as we marathon build school gardens on the weekends. 15 garden beds down and plenty more to come!
• Your network. You always like to make it a community effort of colleagues and business partners to work with us and build our community!
GREEN HEART PARTNER - $25K+
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$5,000 - $9,999
Charleston Promise Neighborhood
Granna’s Gourmet
Half-Moon Outfitters & Columbia
Sportswear Company
Homegrown Hospitality
Kennedy-Herterich Foundation
Lindsey & Wes Carter
Indah Events
Meeting Street Academy
Friends of Sullivan's Island Elem.
Terri Henning
DONORS & SPONSORS
$1,000 - $2,499
Blue Ion
Braddock Family Foundation
Colony & Craft
Don & Susan Harrison
Fred Baker
Gildea Foundation
Good Done Great
Hotels for Hope
John & Mary Ann Dauble
Prospect Real Estate Partners
Sam Moore
Sertoma Club of Charleston
Ted’s Butcher Block
Timothy Liptak
Whole Kids Foundation
$2,500 - $4,999
College of Charleston Farm-to-
School Initiative
$500 - $999 Acacia Falzone Artist & Craftsman Supply Austin Ambrose Beverageboy BiblioLabs Blackbaud BNC Bank Boutique Planning Brackish Bowties Burke High Culinary Arts Butcher & Bee Candlefish Cannonborough Beverage Co. Charleston City Paper Charleston Fun Factory Cherokee, Inc. Compost Rangers Cru Catering D’Allesandro’s Pizza David Aylor Law Offices David Thompson Architect Dellz Uptown DJ Party Dad Hall’s Chophouse Harold’s Cabin Herlong & Associates Holy Spokes Howell & Christmas, LLC Huriyali Hyatt Place Charleston Law Office of Alex Toporek Lowcountry RC&D lululemon Marshall Walker Real Estate Melesa Watts Mercantile & Mash Meredith & Brad Ebenhoeh
$500 - $999 [Cont.] Moonlight Tees Nelson Printing Co. Network for Good Park Cafe PetVet Renzo Pizza & Wine Richard Lee Roper St. Francis Show & Tell Art and Design Shovels & Rope South State Bank SYG Designs Synchronicity Land + Architecture Technical Event Co. The Dampop Fund The Dewberry The Griffon The Juice Joint The Rarebit The Riley Center Valbridge Property Advisors Verde Virginia Mallard Williams & Walsh Attorneys at Law
$10,000 - $24,999
The Boeing Company
High Water Music Festival
Limehouse Produce
Revelry Brewing Co.
Scott E. Phillips Foundation
$2,500 - $4,999 [Cont.]
BlueKey Inc.
Frances Downing
GrowFood Carolina
James ‘Bear’ Dyke
Le Creuset
Meeting Street Elementary
TD Charitable Foundation
Tito’s Handmade Vodka
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DONORS & VOLUNTEERS$100 - $499 Abney Durham Albizia Apothecary Amy Horwitz Betsy Bamberg Beverly Gumb Bill Eubanks Boo Moore Caitlin Green Carol Smith Carolyn Cuttino Carolyn Eiserhardt CC&T Real Estate Charles Cole Chauncey Jordan Chris Duc Christopher O’Neal CurEat Dana Laurens Eve Spratt EVO Pizzeria Faye H. Gooding G. Todd Astor Ginny Deerin Harold’s Cabin Harriett Lee Harry Root Ideas into Action Jack Owens Jackie Ball Jenn Vannatta Jim Brock Joanna Walker Jordan Kirby Karalee Nielsen Fallert Kari MacLaughlin Katherine Bailey
$100 - $499 Kendra Stewart Lisa Brainerd Liz Boles Liz Mitchum Lou Giusto Louisa Hawkins Mary Kate McCulley Matt Sloan Michael Eisner Newkirk Environmental, Inc. Normandy Farms Randy Owen Rich Yessian Ruth Barrow Ruth Flynn Sara Thompson Sarah Ross Sheila Dworkin Skelly Stevens Steven Nielsen Susan Hamlin SYG Designs Tally DaPore Tara Stewart The Daily The Iron Yard The Obstinate Daughter Tina Heath-Schuttenberg Valerie Fallert Vouch Weston Fennell Will & Molly Ramsey William Curtis Zig & Kim Clayton
$50 - $99 Alex & Ani Anabel Mason Anne Marie Forsberg Barbara Fleming Calder Reardon Caroline Ledlie Clifton Edwards Danielle Zorn David Quick Elizabeth Craver Emily Muldrow Emily Randisi Erik Engstrom Evelynn Putnam Gavin McCulley Jeanny Motely-Meetze Joan McLeod Kendra Powers Kathy McCaskill Katie Luciano Katy Quinn Kaye Nance Lauren Clawson Lisa Crabbe Lorene Freehan Lowcountry Local First Lynn Kornya Mary Ann Seamon Patty Regan Potpourri Garden Club Rita Eiserhardt Rose Hefferon Sallie Pritchard Sandra Condon Stephanie Hunt Suzanne Jaco The Glass Onion Tui Allen Wynne Thomas
Volunteer Groups American College of the Building Arts Accountfully Alpha Epsilon Delta Alex & Ani Blackbaud Boeing Bonner Leaders - UNC Charlotte Butcher & Bee Candlefish CCSD Nutrition Services Charitable Society of Charleston Charleston Farmers Market Compost Rangers Five Loaves Cafe Glass Onion Granna’s Gourmet GrowFood Carolina High Water Music Festival College of Charleston Honors Engaged Program Ideas into Action Le Creuset lululemon Mitchell Elementary School Meeting Street Academy Meeting Street Elementary MUSC Urban Farm Obviouslee Marketing Revelry Brewing Co. Rotary Club of Charleston Sanders Clyde Elementary SeamonWhiteside Sustainability Institute Taco Boy Sertoma Club of Charleston Sierra Club Sullivan’s Island Elementary Enston Homes Residents Verde
Buddies Abbie Kline
Alex Goldstein
Alicia Raimann
Alisa Frye
Allison Hansen
Anna Burdecki
Anna Pritchard
Annie Carroccio
Annie Steadman
Audrey McCalley
Blake Mino
Caroline Monteith
Casey Finnen
Catherine Archer
Catt Weglicki
Colleen Dempsey
Devin Sharp
Elise Devoe
Elizabeth Bushey
Emily McDaniel
Emily Randisi
Erin Becwar
Faith Murray
Faith Huff
Genivieve (Clara)
Musselman
Grace Lee
Harrison Gilchrist
Hayley Baker
Jackie (Jacqueline)
Rogers
Jessie Riley
Julia Venditti
Kandra Phillips
Lacey Key
Madeline Kiser
Madison Rice
Maggie Mullis
Buddies [Cont.] Maria Stam
Mary Paige Pilkinton
Matt McCalley
Maura Manning
Mya Belden
Natassia Bryant
Niamh Cahill
Nora McIntyre
Olivia Larossa
Rebecca Schick
Rose Hefferon
Ross Bower
Samantha Lobrano
Sara Thompson
Sarah Bourne
Sarah Shtessel
Stephanie Tanzi
Suzette Fine
Trevor Leach
Will Ramsey
Cooking Matters Amy Shen
Casey Finnen
Catherine Dadmun
Deana Tourigny
Emeline Thorpe
Kaitlynn Schill
Lisa Love
Marisa Urda
Nicole Marriner
Crop Mob [William] Austin Norvell
Alicia Raimann
Andrea Nicole Harris-
Long
Bow Smith
Brandy Lytle
Caryn Gates
Casey Todd
Erik Engstrom
Erin Johnson
Jeffrey Kennedy
Joseph Kohut
Mandy Baker
Michael Pirozzi
Ross Bower
Samantha Ashikari
Sarah Bourne
Sarah Ledbetter
Zach Lascell
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BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Kendra Stewart - President
Weston Fennell - Vice President
Meredith Ebenhoeh - Treasurer
Jill Braddock - Secretary
Dirk Bedford
Abigail Walsh
Chauncey Jordan
Sam Moore
Dana Laurens
Ira Hill
Karalee Nielsen
Russ Seamon
Nikki Seibert
Harriett Lee
Kelly Timmons
Randy Owen
Skelly Stevens
Lou Giusto
Rich Yessian
Morneek Bellinger-Holloway
GREEN HEART STAFF
COLLEGE INTERNS ALLIE ASTOR MARKETING & SOCIAL MEDIA
CRYSTAL MORELLI MARKETING & SOCIAL MEDIA
CALEB SCRUGGS BONNER LEADER - PROGRAM ASST.
LACEY KEY - BONNER LEADER - PROGRAM ASST.
MARGARET STYPA - COOKING MATTERS COORDINATOR
ALEXA SMITH - COOKING MATTERS COORDINATOR
Sophie SergiadisNathan Burnell
Drew Harrison
Allie Mason
Volunteer Coordinator
Executive Director
Garden Coordinator
Program DirectorProgram Director
SPECIAL THANKS TO: HANNA ATTAFI - CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT SPECIALIST
VICTORIA DAVIS - MPA EVALUATION PROJECT
GARDEN CHAMPIONS LIZA WOOD - MITCHELL ELEMENTARY BETSY LAFORCE - SANDERS CLYDE
ERIN O’CONNOR - MEETING STREET ACADEMY RINI COSMOS - SULLIVAN’S ISLAND ELEMENTARY CHRIS WILLIAMS - MEETING STREET ELEMENTARY
PROGRAM MANAGERS KATY QUINN - MITCHELL & SULLIVAN’S ISLAND ELEM. ALICIA RAIMANN - MITCHELL ELEMENTARY ERIN SNOW - MEETING STREET ACADEMY COOPER MATTHESON - MEETING STREET ACADEMY JORDAN TIRAMANI - MEETING STREET ELEMENTARY
CAT BRANTLEY - SANDERS CLYDE JACKIE BALL - SULLIVAN’S ISLAND ELEMENTARY
Amanda Howell
LLF GROWING NEW FARMERS SOPHIE SERGIADIS KATIE SWIERGOSZ NATHAN BURNELL ALLIE KREUTZER
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Expenses vs. Revenues
FY'14
FY'15
FY'16
FY'17
FY'18
175,000 350,000 525,000 700,000
$23,480
$6,862
$19,914
$6,048
$341,904
$240,301
$194,242
$162,559
$91,625
$318,424
$233,439
$174,329
$176,278
$85,577
Expenses Revenue R. Earnings
FY2017 Revenue Sources
Sponsors$58,154
Program Income$25,617
In-Kind$19,215
Grants$14,500
Events $63,171
Donations$59,645
FY2017 Cost Allocations
Overhead19%
Fundraising29%
Programs52%
FY2017 FINANCIALS
Programming Cost Per Student: $10020
STRATEGIC PLANV
ER
TIC
AL
GR
OW
TH
- G
RO
W S
US
TAIN
AB
LY
HORIZONTAL GROWTH - BUILD CAPACITY
FY2018 • Build the Urban Farm @ Enston Homes to
serve 3 additional elementary school programs.
• Create a youth-development program for middle & high school students, growing program impact vertically, with a ‘pay-it-forward’ approach.
FY2018 • Grow 4 new school partnerships expanding into James Island &
Berkeley County.
• Improve program evaluation to include multiple stakeholders including parents & volunteers.
FY2017 • Hired 2 amazing full-time program directors - Allie Mason & Amanda
Howell to support our in-school & after-school programs.
• Created a strategic recruiting & training program to build capacity and empower 7 new program managers to support our 10 programs.
• Enhanced & bound our after-school & in-school program curriculums to allow easy program replication and grow into additional elementary schools.
FY2017 • Completed our 2nd year with an engaged
Board of Directors that has provided immense support through their networks, time, talent & treasures.
• Established one new successful multi-year event partner - High Water Music Festival.
• Established a partnership, design concept & lease with the Charleston Housing Authority to build an urban farm at the Enston Homes.
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Get Involved!
DONATE Sponsor a student or a class to participate in one of our farm-to-school programs.
SPONSOR We’re looking to grow our community of financial supporters for FY2018:
• Green Heart Partner - $25,000 • Community Sponsor - $10,000 • Program Sponsor - $5,000 • Garden Sponsor - $2,500 • Class Sponsor - $500
VOLUNTEER We are always looking for volunteers & volunteer groups to support our gardens and participate as Green Heart Buddies in our programs.
1102 B KING STREET
CHARLESTON, SC [email protected]
843.714.1350
www.greenheartsc.org22