Volunteers work on greenhouse at the Elysian Community Garden
By Jonathan Greene
Published: September 26, 2015
More than a dozen volunteers worked on building a greenhouse, finishing a wood deck, and cutting plus clearing overgrown trees and bushes at the Elysian Community Garden behind School 5.
The volunteers from the Valley National Bank and AmeriCorps worked at the community garden as part of the September 11 National Day of Service and Remembrance, the bank said on Tuesday.
The community garden project was the brainchild of public schools employee Gilman Choudhury and his students who decided to utilize the vacant space behind the school to create a vegetable garden to provide freshly grown produce to area residents.
Gilman’s project has received support from the Passaic County Freeholder Board, the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission, City Green, as well as other organizations.
The building of the greenhouse and the cleanup was sponsored by the New Jersey Community Development Corporation (NJCDC).
The community garden serves to meet nutritional needs of the families who send their children to the full service community school at School 5. Full service schools bring together nonprofits and local schools to meet a child’s social, emotional, and academic needs.
School 5 offers a range of services including educational support programs, family workshops, and after school activities. The school stays open late, on the weekend, and during the summer to serve its students.