An art teacher invited to the groundbreaking for the White House kitchen garden in March 2009 was inspired to co-found a nonprofit, DC Greens, that is involved in many of Washington’s healthful-food-access programs, says the Washington Post. Sarah Holway, the teacher, and a friend, Lauren Biel, started DC Greens in 2009 and now have 12 full-time employees.
“I knew school gardens were important and the right thing to do,” Holway told the Post. “But that experience of the First Lady doing it and highlighting its importance validated my instincts.” Holway was running the school garden at Bancroft Elementary when the school was invited to the White House.
DC Greens wants to ensure the legacy of Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move campaign against child obesity continues after the Obamas leave the White House on Jan. 20, said the Post. DC Greens has a contract with the DC government to train coordinators in gardening techniques, how to incorporate a school garden into the school curriculum and teach children about healthful diets, said the Post. Some 127 schools in DC have gardens, up from 87 in 2011. Biel told the Post, “DC has one of the strongest school garden programs in the country, and when you trace it back, the galvanizing of it began with the planting of the first White House garden.”