Author: Katie Stagliano

Outside Kansas City, Kansas, and a short walk to the Kansas/Missouri state line, Anderson Strom, 12, and his brother Coleman, 14, have been official Katie’s Krops Growers for three years. In 2021 younger brother Lewis will ‘officially’ join them and hundreds of children across the country as a Katie’s Krops Grower. Their adventure in growing with Katie’s Krops began after reading a magazine article on Katie’s Krops. The siblings applied and started raising food in multiple 4 foot by 10-foot beds that give them between 150 and 200 square feet for Katie’s Krops and additional growing space for the family’s own food needs. However, mom Amanda and the family canned so much food in 2019 that nearly all of the produce raised in 2020 was donated to others.

What produce it was too! Okra, lettuce, watermelons, pumpkins, squash, zucchini, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, kale, parsley, green beans, bok choy, brussel sprouts, cucumbers, and strawberries have all been grown. However, Lily the dog THINKS the strawberries are hers and eats them accordingly. One crop that did not work out for them, though, is corn. What, corn didn’t work? They’re in Kansas; how could corn not work?  They did get some great stalks but no actual ears of corn. It could have been a pollination issue; it was a lesson learned that not everything planted is successful in every garden.

While many Katie’s Krops gardeners use raised beds to produce more food, they are pretty much an imperative for Anderson. Trauma at birth resulted in his paralysis from the chest down. That doesn’t keep him down, though. Despite his core and lower limb paraplegia, he has use of his arms and is able to do every garden chore needed; Coleman and younger brother Lewis do not cut him any slack in that area. After all, if he can – and does – kayak and play wheelchair basketball, why should he get out of weeding? In fact, Coleman, Anderson, and Lewis believe that no matter what limitation a person may have, everyone is worthy and able to give, love, and donate their time and energy in whatever way they can and suits them best.  

It’s too bad Lily the dog doesn’t also like Japanese beetles because she could feast on them and probably some caterpillars too. These are two of the pests that the Stroms battle, mainly by using Neem oil. To have a successful crop, they also need to battle hot and humid weather that requires frequent watering, clay dirt, which is one reason they have raised beds and some famous – or should we say infamous – Kansas storms. The hail and wind they produce make it imperative that crops be staked and tied up.

Planting and growing run from the first summer seeds hitting the ground in late March/early April until around Thanksgiving in late November when the fall crops are done. Throughout the year, the harvest is distributed to those who need it through various organizations. The Shawnee Community Center runs a food pantry, and fresh produce is always welcomed.  Sometimes it’s welcomed a little too much, such as the time Coleman and Anderson were stocking the shelves with their vegetables, and the waiting crowd started to mob them to get to it. It was both a little scary and eye-opening to see what it meant to people to get food that was fresh.

Food is also donated to the First Baptist Church in Stilwell, Kansas. The church, as well as some other churches and corporations, partner with Harvesters, a community food bank that currently runs drive-through food distribution events. Harvesters has access to refrigeration and is better able to keep the food fresh until the next distribution day.

Sibling rivalry? It’s not always a bad thing; in the case of Ian and Addison from Austin, Texas, it’s a fun incentive to grow more food through Katie’s Krops.

Ian, a 16-year-old high school senior, started a garden on his grade school grounds when he was eight and in 4^th grade. That was not especially easy since he needed to make sure the plants were watered – Austin summers are sweltering and dry – and protected from storms that sprang up. This entailed riding his bike or getting rides to the school, which involved some planning and coordination. Two years later, he heard about Katie’s Krops and applied for a grant. The funds he received enabled him to start growing his garden at home, which is much more convenient and easier during adverse weather and grow he does. His vegetable garden includes tomatoes, root vegetables, Armenian cucumbers, sweet potatoes, various greens, okra, and bullet head wax melons, which taste like a sweet squash and can grow rather large; his biggest one topped out at almost 100 pounds.

Addison, a 14-year-old high school freshman, decided to join her brother in the garden to see if she could grow more. Her efforts are concentrated on fruit, such as strawberries and [potted pomegranates. She has grown cantaloupe in the past, and she and Ian share a fig tree, but it’s not old enough to produce fruit yet. Addison also tends a butterfly garden to aid in pollination and grows edible flowers.

The sibling rivalry is not Ian’s primary reason for his garden, but he’s quick to laughingly remind his sister that he currently produces more food than she does. Ian is more motivated by fulfilling a need for food and the reaction of people who receive it.  He initially started distributing food by setting up a table in a food desert area without many fresh produce options, which let him see the people he helped. Ian also donated to food banks and set up a table at a local food pantry. With the Covid-19 virus, he has had to decrease the direct distribution to people and now works with a parent support specialist at a local school who gives out the food to those in need. On occasion, Ian can join them at their community events or deliver directly to people whose names come from some non-profits with which he is in contact. In all cases, hearing the food recipients’ stories provides even more motivation to garden.

As any gardener knows, there are challenges in growing. For Addison and Ian,  these include the lizards that love to feast on the strawberries. Squirrels, birds, rats, and other critters also like to help themselves to the produce. The oppressive heat in July and August means that most crops will not grow during that period, but freezing rain in winter can also impede crop production. Storms provide another challenge with their heavy wind and rain. When Hurricane Harvey hit in 2017, much of the garden was flattened, including the okra plants. Even though the storm pulled them out of the ground and they ended up laying flat across the raised garden beds, they proved their resilience by growing new roots, bending their stems at a 90-degree angle, and producing more okra as they once again pointed to the sky and grew.

The siblings are very much supported in their efforts by their mom. They have also had friends help in the past. Due to the pandemic, they had had to work independently.

As for what’s next, well, Ian will be heading to college next year where he would like to continue gardening; it’s one of his criteria for selecting a school. Addison is looking forward to taking over the garden and winning the competition.

Two continents, two gardens? Yes, that’s what Katie Krops gardener Megan Godwin has accomplished. When she was twelve years old, Megan moved to South Carolina, where her mother, a teacher, taught Katie’s brother and was Katie’s eleventh-grade homeroom teacher. At the time, the Katie’s Krops flagship garden was located at the school. With a heart for service even then, Megan participated in garden workdays in the large garden and helped cook and serve Katie’s Krops dinners using the produce from the garden. Megan became a core volunteer who embraced every volunteer opportunity Katie’s Krops offered and connected deeply with the people at the dinners.

Megan left South Carolina to attend Stetson University in central Florida, where she is currently a sophomore pursuing a double major in Health Science and Public Health. This did not dim her desire to serve and help people by providing fresh, organic produce and seeing the positive impact on their lives. Aloma Church, which she attends, gave her a plot of land for growing, and she received an annual grant from Katie’s Krops for creating her garden. As a result, she has provided an abundant harvest to the church’s Single Women’s Ministry and the Orlando Union Rescue Mission, a faith-based homeless shelter that runs homes for women and children and men, and volunteers her time to work with the children. Her efforts won her the honor of Rookie of Year with Katie’s Krops in 2018.

Gardening in Florida presents challenges, including only two seasons, at least with regards to weather. In winter, collards and swiss chard grow in abundance and are used by the shelter in soups and stews. Summer is longer – much longer – and her best crops so far are okra, eggplant, peppers, and squash. The high summer heat is problematic for many other vegetables, but Megan perseveres and keeps trying. One of those improvement efforts is rebuilding the raised garden beds. The beds will now be twelve inches high, rather than six inches, and use cinder blocks so they will not rot. Her 2021 grant from Katie’s Krops will fund this effort. As with all the garden work, the rebuild is being done by Megan, a group of college friends, and even the parents of the friends.

Now, about that second garden… Compassion International visited Aloma Church and shared their Compassion Success stories at camp. Megan prayed for guidance in helping people in an African country, and through the Mishono Foundation, she was afforded an opportunity to travel to Kenya to create a garden. Just five days after turning 19, she obtained a grant from Katie’s Krops and flew to Kenya by herself. She supplemented the Foundation’s efforts to feed, clothe, and educate children, thereby teaching the children how to garden. These homeless children work in the garden to share the harvest, but they’re happy and excited to do it since they are rewarded with fresh food that they produce themselves under the guidance of supervising team. The supervisors even say the kids are independent in doing the work. Megan is looking forward to returning to Kenya once Covid-19 does not affect travel.

In the meantime, Megan’s work truly reflects Katie’s Krops mission to fight for a more generous world. To think, it all started because her mother taught Katie in school…