West Central Initiative Support on BLA’s Intergenerational CommunityGarden’s mission: A space for Mental Health solutions

People come to the garden with their own goals and objectives. For some,

it’s a place for relaxation and grounding. However, we believe that a garden

is also a space to commune with nature—interacting with plants, the grass,

flowers, and air around you.

In this space, a gardener thinks about what they are about to plant, how it

will grow, and wonders if it will bear food at the end of the season. The

planning phase is very critical and a moment of hope for a gardener. It is a

period of extensive presence with nature, insects, and belief for a better

season.

The conversations we have in the garden—about what we grow, how we

grow it, and why—become a kind of medicine. They bring healing to the

gardeners and to those who stop by to ask questions or hear our stories.

Sometimes, passersby wonder how this idea came to be: a community

gathering around a shared plot of land. They ask about next year—if they,

too, can be part of the journey.

Spending five months in the garden can be deeply therapeutic. Our elders

have told us so themselves. It’s a space where they meet, share stories of

war, of refugee camps, and reflect on how far they’ve come. These stories

are powerful. They are stories of survival and transition, spoken in native

languages without interpreters, full of laughter and life.

The harvest season, too, is healing and deeply rewarding. Even when

everyone plants the same crops, gardeners still share with their friends and

neighbors what they’ve grown. Back in their apartments, they prepare

meals to share with others from Afrika, creating bonds that extend beyond

the garden fence.

Baraza La Afrika (BLA) wants to expand this learning opportunity to our

youth—those born here and those who arrived as toddlers. Many of them

don’t know where food comes from or how it’s grown. But they are our

future and our changemakers. BLA’s mission is to raise a generation of

earth stewards who will help build a world free from hunger and food

insecurity.

The Baraza La Afrika Community Garden was born in 2022 out of a

partnership with the Food & Ecology Partnership, whose mission is to

increase access to fresh food and improve sustainability in the

Fargo/Moorhead foodshed. That same year, I moved to the Midwest from

Vermont, and we were temporarily granted a small plot of land for

community gardening.

In 2023, BLA founders Cleophace and Jules began growing food for

household use and shared their harvest with four or five community

members. By 2024, with grant support from the West Central Initiative, we

launched a pilot program involving 10 families on a shared garden plot

measuring approximately 35 by 20 meters. Although the space was limited

and heavy rains impacted the yield, families still harvested produce through

their collective effort.

Due to growing community interest, the Food & Ecology Partnership

negotiated additional land, and BLA received a 70 by 60 meter area—six

times larger than the original. This new space allowed us to welcome 21

families and meet the rising demand for access to land. Photos of this work

can be found on our Facebook page.

In the 2025 season, we conducted a survey to estimate the impact of the

garden. We found that approximately 129 people—60 adults and 69

children—benefit from the food grown. The total pounds harvested are

estimated at 1,000.

This is the power of community. When cities invest in land and resources,

the impact is real and measurable. With just a small plot of land, 129

people have been fed. If all New American communities had access to

such spaces, we could reduce hunger and improve health outcomes. Our

food is organic and nutrient-dense—grown with care, intention, and love.

This work would not be possible without the ongoing support of the West

Central Initiative and the Food & Ecology Partnership. But looking ahead,

we face uncertainty. It’s unclear whether land will be available to us next

season. And yet, the need is growing. A permanent space for gardening is

essential—not just for food security, but for building lasting economic

opportunity.

The community garden gives us a sense of belonging. More land means

more food, more independence, and less hunger. BLA envisions

transforming our community from one of consumers into one of producers.

If you want to go fast, go alone, but if you want far, go together.

(Afrikan Proverb)