The Edible Schoolyard Project is a non-profit organization built upon a vision to educate communities through a variety of hands-on experiences. Whether it be out in the sun growing your own produce or in the kitchen taking a virtual family cooking class, ESY has something for everyone.
The Edible Schoolyard Project announced in late September 2021 on its official Instagram that the non-profit secured the lease to a community farm in the South Stockton area. ESY and the community can now continue to set roots down in a secured space.
“We knew we wanted to have a positive impact but still grow with the community to understand who they are and they know who we are,” said ESY Community Engagement Manager Patricia Miller.
Being able to thrive on the volunteers from the community is a key factor for the project as the sole purpose is to connect and educate the community together as one. Cleaning up acres of land together and setting up plots for volunteers to grow their own crops is an amazing sight for those even just driving by.
Garden Specialist Tonya Jowers is one piece of the puzzle anyone looking for guidance can go to and connect with.
“My job is to find the projects and handle the projects and make sure everybody, all our plot holders, have what they need to be successful in their gardens,” said Jowers as she looked over the area and volunteers nearby.
Jowers wasn’t the only one guiding others, but a whole team with a similar background is constantly doing so as well.
Striking up conversations with anyone and everyone can lead to a learning experience at the farm. The main piece to everything is the people and already having such diversity in Stockton has opened a door full of knowledge for those who choose to go through it.
“So it’s also a place to share education with others and help others out too. We learn from everyone out here….it’s a big learning process, it’s like a big outdoor learning center out here where you learn from everybody doesn’t matter what culture they’re from you learn. The idea is to learn something from every culture, ya know, always keep an open mind about your garden,” said Farm Specialist Ray Ledesma.
Ledesma focused on the idea that everyone should take this community farm as an opportunity to not only develop the gardens but our own bodies as well. He discussed why being able to grow your own healthy food is important. It’s about healthy returns for the rest of your life.
“Sometime in your life, you have to take care of your body don’t wait till you’re seventy, eighty, ninety years old to find out you’ve been eating the wrong stuff. Start when you’re young,” said Ledesma. “The consumer will eat it not knowing any idea what’s in it and how it can affect our health. If we grow our own food here and we use the proper seeds that aren’t genetically modified we know we are eating healthy food here.”
Knowing where food is grown, and being involved in the process changes the relationship with it. The cultivators at ESY aren’t there to make money, but to be part of the process.
“We are not here for the mighty dollar, we are not here like farmers that have a thousand acres and grow for the purpose of profit,” Ledesma said.
All the volunteers at the ESY are growing food tailored to their needs.
They’re starting a cycle focusing on being more aware of what goes into the body. Your everyday diet is playing a big role in your lifestyle and you function on a daily basis. Volunteers are learning a variety of things from the workshops and even just from the conversions held between one another. Since there isn’t an age limit on who can volunteer, grade school students and even children of some plot holders also come out to be in this learning environment.
“So… long-term. My end game since I started farming is I want my children’s children to have a piece of this… so that they thrive… that’s the legacy for me and a lot of other folks out here feel the same way,” said Miller.