Wednesday, April 29, 2009

The grand opening of the Wilmington Housing Authority's (WHA) William McDuffie Community Garden will be held 10 a.m. Saturday, May 2 at the Hillcrest Community Center, 1402 Meares Street. At 10:30 a.m., the garden will be dedicated to the late president of the Hillcrest Resident Organization, William McDuffie.

The community garden will be used to teach Hillcrest residents how to grown herbs, tomatoes, onions and other vegetables. The educational area also includes a compost bin to help children learn how to make their own soil and cut down on waste. The children will plant seedlings in garden boxes at the event.

UNC Wilmington students have been instrumental in the development of the garden. In last year, UNCW faculty and students have performed needs assessments and food access studies, provided after school programs, facilitated after school tutoring, provided information technology support, and implemented other educational and service activities in the WHA communities.

UNCW and WHA will hold an event to celebrate a successful year of collaboration 5 p.m. Friday, May 1 at the Hillcrest Community Center. Children of Hillcrest will present a digital book and a commercial that they created.

Media are invited to take advantage of interviews with Hillcrest residents and other participants at both events upon request.

Media Contact:
Joy Davis, Marketing and Communications, 910.916.8603 or davisjc@uncw.edu