Harvest Festival 2013!

For the fifth year in a row, we hosted the annual Peace Patch Project Schoolyard Gardens Harvest Festival.  We rented space at the Enoch Davis Recreation Center at 1111 18th Avenue South.

Board member Chelley Tighe sets up our outdoor live music cafe

The space was full of light and perfect for the occasion.  In years past, we have held individual harvest festivals at each of school where we grow gardens.  This year, with four schools, we decided to hold the harvest dinner at a single location.

Alix Brett, Robin Gipson, and Chelley set up the tables with lovely lime green table cloths.

Slowly after 6:15, families, teachers, and community members began to trickle into the auditorium, while Eckerd College student volunteers put final touches on their dishes in the nearby kitchen.

Before we knew it, a line stretched to the door, as kids and families and others waited to get a sampling of the Peace Patch Harvest.

Local musician, Jun Bustamante (left), played acoustic guitar in the Cafe.  Board members Joe Esposito (center) and Andrew Chittick (right) shmoozed with the talent before the show.

By 6:30, table were filling up and the auditorium was filling with the joyous noise of feasting people.

Volunteer teens from the Carerra After-School Program dropped by and helped serve some food.

Muhammed, Daisha, Cameron, Meoshea, Christon, Zion, Freeman, and in front,  Martin.

We raffled ten plants including this corn.

Founder and Executive Director, Kip Curtis, with the lucky winner of a corn plant.

After the food was devoured and the prizes given out, student volunteers and volunteers from Missio Dei helped clean up the dishes, straighten the kitchen, and put the hall back in shape.

It was a lovely evening and a fine ending to another successful semester.