Please Join Us For Our
March Katie’s Krops St. Patrick’s Day Dinner
Thursday, March 28th
Dinner is served from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Summerville Baptist Church
417 Central Avenue in Summerville
The dinner is always healthy, hot, & FREE.
Due to an increase in the number of guests take-out meals are only available one per person for guests who are unable to dine between the hours of 6 – 7 p.m.
www.KatiesKrops.com – Katie @ KatiesKrops.com -327-3366
Elegant Living Magazine recently wrote an article about Katie Stagliano, a 16-year-old philanthropist who runs a nonprofit organization called Katie’s Krops. Katie starts and maintains vegetable gardens and donates the food to help feed people in need. The article about Katie ended up on Bill Clinton‘s desk and he was so impressed with Katie, he decided to award her with the Clinton Global Citizen Award, sponsored by The Clinton Global Initiative (CGI). Katie was lucky to have Matt Damon present her with the prestigious award.
Congratulations to Katie Stagliano and to Elegant Living Magazine for writing about people who make a positive difference in the world!
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Now 14, she’s been growing and feeding people ever since, with her nonprofit Katie’s Krops that now seeds 55 kid-grown gardens in 21 states and produces thousands of pounds of vegetables.
In September, the cabbage that started her crusade landed the Pinewood Prep 8th grader in New York City – and in the company of President Bill Clinton, as one of six recipients of this year’s Clinton Global Citizen Awards. “He’s really into science,” says Katie. “He talked to me about photosynthesis.”
Katie works with groups addressing childhood health and nutrition issues and is part of an upcoming documentary Give Me Your Hungry. She’s also been featured on the Great American Country cable network’s Great American Heroes with Trace Adkins show.
“He’s a country boy,” says Katie of Adkins. “He makes fun of me and my mom for wearing gardening gloves.”
Her now-famous cabbage seedling that she planted in her family’s backyard made 275 meals (supplemented with ham and rice) at a homeless shelter in Katie’s community.
Says Katie, “I thought, ‘Wow, with one cabbage I helped feed that many people? I could do much more.’ ”
She started other gardens – in her subdivision, on donated land and on a field at school – seeded with donated plants and tended by school and community volunteers Katie recruited.
Those vegetables and volunteer networks have sprouted, feeding growing numbers of the needy. Her nonprofit, started in 2010, offers grants of garden center gift cards to fledgling gardeners ages 9-16 to start their own gardens, with a new grant application cycle that goes through Feb. 12. Katie hopes to eventually have gardens in all 50 states.
Katie is active in monthly suppers in Summerville, where kids cook vegetables from their gardens and feed anywhere from 50-150 people. A November dinner in a neighboring community transformed an elementary school into a restaurant for several hundred students and their families.
“A lot of these kids have never been to a real restaurant before and they’re not really eating as healthy as they should be,” she says.
Despite being thankful for the oversized vegetable that started it all, Katie offers a tiny admission: “I don’t really eat cabbage that much. I know I’m supposed to probably love it but it’s not one of my favorite vegetables,” she says. “But I mean, it’s not that bad.”
We are thrilled to announce our very first Katie’s Krops Camp. This July fourteen Katie’s Krops Grantees will attend an all expenses paid 3 days camp in Pelion, South Carolina. This immersive experience will not only reward our grantees but will also teach them new growing practices, budgeting, how to photograph their gardens and so many other tools which will increase their productivity as well as the impact that they are having in their communities. The camp will also feature a Katie’s Krops Dinner where the campers will prepare a meal for families in need in Columbia, South Carolina. The camp will give our grantees the opportunity to get to know their peers, meet and work with the Founder of Katie’s Krops as well as meet a few surprise special guests.
The camp to be held July 16-18, 2013, at the headquarters of WP Rawl a sponsor of Katie’s Krops. Giving back to the community is important to the family-owned WP Rawl, and a partnership with Katie’s Krops was a perfect match. As such, for every bag of specially marked Nature’s Greens Kale and Collard Greens sold from October 2012 – January 2013, WP Rawl gave a percentage of sales to Katie’s Krops and provided funding for 15 grants in 2013, along with funding the camp.
“The first time I watched Katie speak, I knew I wanted to help her cause,” said Ashley Rawl, Director of Sales & Marketing for WP Rawl. “I started thinking of ways where we could help her empower other kids to do the same thing she is already doing. Katie’s Camp was born on that day and I am so pleased that we will be able to make it come to life.”
We at Katie’s Krops are so proud of all of our young growers across the country. To bring our grantees together is dream come true. We are excited to learn from them and further empower them to grow a healthy end to hunger in their communities.
The camp will be open to all current and new Katie’s Krops Grantees. Our current grant cycle, which is open to kids 9 to 16 and is sponsored by WP Rawl and Opal Apple is open until March 1st (please see the grant section of our website for an application). All new grantees that are selected during the current grant cycle will be eligible to apply to attend the camp.
Here is a sneak peek at our Katie’s Krops Camp Garden growing at W. P. Rawl Farm…
“God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today. Have you used one to say “thank you?””
William Arthur Ward.
A few months ago I wrote a blog, that I never posted, about the power of the two words, “Thank You”. This morning I was reminded just how powerful those word are. How two words can change the course of events.
‘Thank you’. Those two words may be some of the most meaningful and powerful words a person can speak, type, and write. I have an abundance of gratitude for the people who have helped me achieve my dreams. My parents have always instilled in me to be grateful for all we have. It was those words spoken by my father that changed the course of my life at nine-years-old. As we sat down to the dinner table one night my father explained that we should be grateful that we had a healthy meal to eat every night. He explained that there were families who were not able to put food on their tables therefore going to bed hungry. It was at that moment that I decided to donate the cabbage I had been growing to a soup kitchen. I was thankful for what I had, and if I could help someone who did not have enough to eat I wanted to share. Being grateful for what my family and I had changed my life.
I will never forget the day I donated my cabbage to Tri County Family Ministries. There were so many people waiting in line for what may have been the only meal that they would have that day. My 40 pound cabbage drew a lot of attention from the individuals waiting on line. The questions began, “Did you grow that?”, “How big is that cabbage?”, “Is that for us?” The answer was yes, my cabbage was no longer, ‘my cabbage’, it was their cabbage. This cabbage was for them. What they said next made all the difference in the world, they said ‘thank you’. They expressed how grateful they were for what I, a very little girl, was doing for them. Their words were powerful. Their words made what I did next the easiest decision of my life. I started a garden to help to continue to fed the families that were struggling to put food on their tables.
I could never have imagined five years ago how those events would change my life. My gratitude for what I had, their gratitude for what I was able to give them, changed my life. The power of ‘Thank You’ is life changing.
As I move forward in my life I never will forget how powerful those words can be. I know I may never be able to thank everyone who has helped and support Katie’s Krops, but I will try because I know the impact of those two words.
So thank you to everyone who has ever helped Katie’s Krops, thank you for your support and donations, and thank you for believing in a fourteen year old and her dream.
On your next visit to the grocery store look for Katie’s Krops in your produce aisle. We are so honored to have the support of WP Rawl, a wonderful grower in Pelion, South Carolina. For every bag of Rawl’s specially marked Nature’s Greens Kale and Collard Greens sold through the end of the year, WP Rawl will give a percentage to Katie’s Krops to help with the our 2013 initiatives. This donation will allow us to fund 15 gardens next spring. So the next time you are in the grocery store please look for the special marked packages of Nature’s Greens Collard Greens & Kale and pick up a bag or two to show your support for Katie’s Krops and our wonderful sponsor WP Rawl. Looking for great recipes using Collard Greens & Kale? Visit the http://rawl.net/cook.html website for delcious recipes.
The recipients of the 6th Annual Clinton Global Citizen Awards included a 14-year old who started gardens to supply soup kitchens to alleviate hunger, the world’s richest man who has spent $6 billion of his wealth boosting health care and education, two courageous leaders who risk their lives standing up for LGBT rights, a successful entrepreneur who turned his skills to helping revitalize Haiti, and business and philanthropy leaders recognized for their outstanding contributions.
The Clinton Global Citizen Awards recognizes individuals from various sectors who demonstrate visionary leadership in addressing global challenges. Carlos Slim Helú, founder of Fundación Carlos Slim; Luis A. Moreno, president of Inter-American Development Bank; Denis O’Brien, chairman and founder of Digicel Group; Pepe Julian Onziema, programme director and advocacy officer of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG); The Right Reverend Christopher Senyonjo, executive director of St. Paul’s Reconciliation and Equality Centre; and Katie Stagliano, founder and chief executive gardener of Katie’s Krops, will accept awards this year.
“The work being done by this year’s honorees is nothing short of extraordinary,” said President Bill Clinton. “Tonight I’m proud to honor two Ugandans who risk their lives to secure basic human dignities many of us take for granted, three leaders whose contributions have positively impacted communities across the Caribbean and Latin America, and a social entrepreneur on pace to take my job before she turns 16. These are some truly amazing folks. They embody the spirit of CGI and inspire us all to be more responsible citizens of the world.”
