Edna W. Runner Tutorial Center awarded $100K to ‘grow’ ‘Edna’s Community Garden Project’ by Impact the Palm Beaches

Funding supports limitless opportunity for children to learn about gardening, healthy meals -- with eye on goal to give back to the community 200 container gardens

Kids bloom when they are ‘planted’ at the Edna W. Runner Tutorial Center, and thanks to a $100,000 coveted award by Impact the Palm Beaches, the children served by the afterschool program, will now truly experience the impact of seeds sown in the nonprofit’s beautiful, newly-constructed and planted campus gardens.

“This award enables us the limitless opportunity for our children to not only learn and practice hands-on, all aspects of gardening, but to gain understanding and awareness about giving back to the community,” said Edna W. Runner, Executive Director of the Edna W. Runner Tutorial Center.

“We are so appreciative and honored that Impact the Palm Beaches recognized our belief that Edna’s Community Garden Project will help children build confidence and understand things that will carry them through their lives in a different way, impact the community for years to come,” she said.

Having three gardening and nature sites near the Center, the Center is poised to have a transformative impact on the education, mental health and wellness of the community’s students and residents. The newly constructed Simon’s Giving Garden, dedicated with a ribbon cutting ceremony in April, provides community food, butterfly garden, outdoor seating, and is a place for students to learn the benefits of healthy eating and how to grow affordable herbs, fruits and vegetables with an environmental curriculum and STEM activities to improve scientific knowledge. Additionally, container vegetable and herb gardens will be shared to create 200 community gardens that can be planted at home, at businesses, and in the County’s vacant lands.

Edna’s Community Park includes two areas full of trees, brush, and native plant species and an additional .4 acre preserve at the Tutorial Center. Both preserves will include the planting and monitoring native plants and animals to document the recovery and health of the native habitats, planting of native fruit trees, and development of a butterfly garden for the community’s enjoyment and environmental education. The Center is actively seeking funds to complete and launch these healthy programs and wellness initiatives and is proud to be recognized for their ongoing efforts and the honor of this award.

Entering its 35^th year of service, the West Jupiter Community Group, Inc. is a 501c3

that serves the West Jupiter community. In 1993, In 1993, the tutorial building, was rededicated as the “Edna W. Runner Tutorial Center” in honor of its Executive Director, Ms. Edna. Its mission, to provide a safe and nurturing environment for at-risk students and families so they may pursue academic and personal excellence, fosters its vision – to empower the children of West Jupiter to overcome the circumstances of poverty, excel educationally, and live meaningful lives.

For more information about the Edna W. Runner Tutorial Center, or schedule a tour, contact Mary Kay Willson at 561-745-0950 or marykay@ewrunnerctr.org. To learn more, visit www.ewrunnerctr.org.