Growing Community: Cynthia’s Story
Meet Cynthia. Last year she graduated from CCUA’s three-year Opportunity Gardens Program. This year she completed our 32-week Market Garden Apprenticeship. Her family comes to all our events, she sat on our Christmas float with her daughter and nephew last year—she is all in. Most people know CCUA for just one of our many programs. A child who came on a field trip, or a food pantry shopper who puts our produce in their basket. Other people, the Cynthias, take full advantage of all the many opportunities CCUA makes available.
Cynthia working at Kilgore’s Community Garden, one of CCUA’s three locations, during one of her apprenticeship shifts.
Before CCUA, Cynthia gardened with mixed success. She had a big garden when she lived out in the country, but it didn’t go well. She tried a smaller garden with better success but felt like it wasn’t enough. Then, Cynthia found out that her uncle was in a program that helped people be successful home gardeners. This was her introduction to Opportunity Gardens. In 2020, she joined the program herself, recruited her mom into the program, and began a gardening journey that would change her life and the lives of her family. Cynthia’s father always dreamed of having a farm with multiple houses where the extended family could live with animals, crops, and a pond. This dream became Cynthia’s dream. Cynthia and I sat down recently to discuss her journey. Our conversation kept tying back to family and community,
“When I think of the benefits of Opportunity Gardens and the apprenticeship, it always comes back to community. My younger daughter picks flowers and gives them to our neighbors. This year, my 16-year-old daughter asked if she could grow flowers in the garden. She isn’t as excited by the garden as my younger daughter, so I was so happy. She also takes care of our chickens and nursed one back to health last year. This year she volunteered with me during one of my shifts and it has been fun to spend time together. I wouldn’t be able to take advantage of these opportunities without my husband’s and our family’s support.”
Cynthia grows Peruvian hot pepper varieties to cook in meals for her family. She lived in Peru as a child and having these important cultural foods is a big deal. Aiden, her son, has texture and sensory issues and a slow metabolism. He is always excited to pick his own strawberries. The garden provides healthy food that meets his needs.
Cynthia’s daughter harvesting onions in their family garden.
“Farm Your Yard” is a way of life for Cynthia. Her home in the Parkade neighborhood has been completely transformed into a food-producing oasis. Cynthia told me all about the information, experience, and resources in the apprenticeship. Soil health and irrigation were big “ah-ha” moments for her, but she has also learned how to bring more resources to her operation. She now has an FSA farm number from the UDSA, which will allow her to apply for USDA loans, grants, and other assistance programs. An application for incentive payments has already been submitted to the University of Missouri’s Climate-Resilient Crop and Livestock (CRCL) Project. Cynthia was reflecting on her experience in the apprenticeship program,
“I am the sole earner in our family. My son has a disability and so my husband has to stay home with him all day. My life can be kind of stressful. I didn’t realize how much I needed this [apprenticeship]. Working and raising my kids, I fell into the same routine. Stepping away for those twelve hours a week broke up things. I was able to connect with the other apprentices in a way I hadn’t been able to do with other adults in a long time... I didn’t realize how much I needed that community of people, to laugh and tell jokes was so great.”
Cynthia harvesting peppers she grew at Columbia’s Agriculture Park during her apprenticeship.
Your support of our programming means more people like Cynthia and her family have the opportunity to improve their lives.
Cynthia’s daughters watering a freshly planted garden bed.
