NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WAVY) — Five local Rotary Club groups came together over the weekend to build a garden for a free grocery store set to open this November in Newport News.
The garden is at 12749 Nettles Drive, at the same location as The Market at THRIVE, which will be the Peninsula’s first free grocery store. Produce from the garden will be distributed at the Market.
The clubs worked over three days after being awarded $25,000 in grant funding from Rotary District 7600 for the project. They built 24 garden boxes, 10 of which are self-watering, with tower gardens and berry trellises to grow a variety of fruits and vegetables. They renovated a community room for the facility.
“The services THRIVE provides are essential to our local community so I was thrilled when all 5 Peninsula clubs echoed my enthusiasm for this project from day one,” said Jennifer Daknis, Grants Chair, The Rotary Club of Warwick at City Center. “This is a wonderful opportunity for Rotarians to put Service Above Self in a meaningful and impactful way for the benefit of families facing economic hardships.”
You can read more about the new THRIVE facility here.
