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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 05/24/2022

Contact: Sylvia Crum
Director of Communications and Development
www.asdevelop.org
scrum@asdevelop.org 
276-791-5572 (cell) 

DUFFIELD, Va. – Appalachian Sustainable Development (ASD) and the Four Seasons YMCA in Tazewell, Virginia, are celebrating their new community garden partnership with a garden launch party on Friday, June 3, 2022 from 5:30pm to 7:00pm at the YMCA Community Garden, 106 Gratton Road, Tazewell, Virginia, 24651. The event is free and will feature speakers, a garden tour, children’s activities and a ribbon cutting. In addition, ASD will provide boxed dinners by Fisher and Company and gift bags for the first 100 registered guests. Registration is required: https://gardenlaunchparty.eventbrite.com

This community garden partnership pairs ASD’s Groundwork workforce development program with the YMCA’s existing community garden, providing an agriculture-based job-training site for Groundwork participants while also giving the YMCA an enthusiastic work crew to manage the planning, planting, harvesting, and education of their ¾-acre garden space. This partnership is made possible through the support of Thompson Charitable Foundation and Aetna. 

“It is the long-standing mission of both ASD and the YMCA to build healthier communities, focusing on the mind, body, and spirit,” said Shawn Durham, director of the YMCA. “All of that starts with the food we eat. And we are so thrilled to welcome ASD to Tazewell and to work alongside them as they increase local access to healthy foods, train a new generation of growers and producers, and help us create a thriving community space for everyone to enjoy.”

Kathlyn Terry Baker, Appalachian Sustainable Development CEO adds, “The Tazewell community has been wonderful to work with. They have been enthusiastic supporters and we are so grateful to be able to expand our work here and partner with the YMCA in support of building healthier communities and lives.”

This season, ASD’s Groundwork team will be growing produce for sale through a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program. Families who would like a weekly box of naturally-grown produce, should contact ASD’s Garden Supervisor David Gabbert at dgabbert@asdevelop.org or call the YMCA at (276) 979-0280 extension 1886.

About Groundwork 

Groundwork is ASD’s innovative workforce development program that provides paid, on-the-job training combined with wraparound personal support for people with barriers to employment. The program delivers transferable skills supported by industry certification so participants will have broad options for growing a strong career. Groundwork provides training in five separate career pathways: Agriculture and Business, Digital Media Production, Food Production/Commercial Kitchen, Warehouse/Logistics and Sustainability. 

About Appalachian Sustainable Development (ASD)

Living Better. Locally. It’s what drives ASD’s commitment to propel its mission to build a thriving regional food and agriculture system that creates healthy communities, respects the planet, and cultivates profitable opportunities for Appalachians. Since 1995, ASD has been working in Central Appalachia, providing hope, and making a difference for the people who call the region home. What began as opportunities for struggling tobacco farmers to grow fruits and vegetables have become lasting solutions to regional challenges that impact economic development, workforce development, food access, health, and wellness. Over the years, ASD has expanded its reach from northeast TN and southwest VA to include partners in WV, OH and KY, enabling the organization to bring resources back to the region. For more information, visit: https://asdevelop.org.

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