At the Bob Burdette Center, we believe in building a healthier future—not just for the environment, but for our children and our community. That’s why, through our Community Garden project, made possible by a grant from the Pallottine Foundation of Huntington, we’ve embraced composting as a way to reduce waste, enrich the soil, and teach valuable life lessons.
To date, our dedicated personnel have contributed over 250 pounds of food waste that would have otherwise been sent to a landfill. Instead, we’ve composted this material into nutrient-rich soil to support the continued success of our garden, which is now entering its second year of serving the people of Charleston’s West Side communities.
But the garden isn’t just about growing food—it’s about growing minds, healthy habits, and a lifelong understanding of wellness.
The Garden as a Classroom: Teaching Healthy Habits
At the Bob Burdette Center, we incorporate teaching practices into every aspect of our gardening work. Our Community Garden is a hands-on learning tool that connects children to the Healthy Habits curriculum, teaching them the importance of making good choices in every area of life—from nutrition to sustainability and beyond.
Lessons from the Garden:
🌱 Why Healthy Choices Matter: Kids learn how the food they eat affects their bodies, comparing the impact of junk food versus nutrient-dense foods in an engaging, hands-on way.
🥗 Science in the Kitchen: Cooking isn’t just about making food—it’s chemistry! We teach kids the science behind cooking, how different ingredients react, and why fresh, whole foods are essential to a strong foundation for a good life.
🌍 Environmental Responsibility: Through composting, children see first hand how waste can be transformed into something valuable, reinforcing lessons about sustainability and stewardship.
Why Composting Matters
Composting isn’t just an environmental initiative—it’s a practical way to teach responsibility, patience, and the natural cycles of life. Here are some of the key benefits:
1. Reducing Waste & Protecting the Planet
Food waste makes up nearly 30% of all household trash, most of which ends up in landfills where it emits methane, a powerful greenhouse gas. By composting, we significantly reduce waste and lower our carbon footprint.
2. Enriching the Soil Naturally
Compost provides vital nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium to the soil, improving soil structure, moisture retention, and microbial life—all crucial for a thriving garden.
3. Connecting Kids to Their Food
Many children don’t realize where their food comes from. Through gardening, they develop a deeper understanding of the journey from soil to plate, making them more likely to appreciate and choose healthier options.
4. Turning Waste into Usable Soil
For every pound of food scraps composted, about half a pound of compost is created. This means that our 250 pounds of food waste have already yielded approximately 125 pounds of nutrient-rich compost—a huge boost for our garden’s soil health.
Building a Stronger, Healthier Community
As we continue into the second year of our Community Garden project, we are proud of how this initiative is teaching kids and families about sustainability, healthy eating, and environmental stewardship.
Each handful of compost we add to the garden isn’t just feeding plants—it’s feeding minds, values, and healthier futures.
We invite our community to join us in this mission, whether by volunteering, learning, or simply making small changes at home. Together, we can turn food waste into growth, one pound at a time.