The Frayser Community Urban Garden recently won the City of Memphis’ first Community Beautification Pitch Competition, a competition for individuals to pitch to the Memphis City Council on projects focusing on improving neighborhoods.
The Frayser Community Urban Garden was established in a collaboration between UT Health Science Center’s College of Medicine and its Board of Visitors advisory council; the City of Memphis Division of Parks and Neighborhoods, which offered the land for the garden; residents of Frayser; and the University of Tennessee Extension Institute of Agriculture.
As the winner, the garden will receive comprehensive support from the council, which may include financial and logistical support, and collaboration with city departments. “It’s not just a win for Frayser, it’s a win for the city,” said Camille James, manager of the Frayser Community Urban Garden. “Normally when you put the word Frayser in Google, you would see all this crime. Now, if you put in the Frayser garden, it’s popping up, it’s changing the narrative. And that was one of the objectives Dr. Altha Stewart gave to us, she said ‘let’s change the narrative.’”
Altha Stewart, MD, senior associate dean for Community Health Engagement in the College of Medicine and founding director of the Center for Youth Advocacy and Well-Being at the UT Health Science Center, led the organization of the garden and the planting kick-off event in 2021.
“I am extremely proud of the work of the Garden Council over the past three years,” said Dr. Stewart. “Their efforts have resulted in bringing together members of the community in support of a shared goal for how they want their community viewed going forward. UT Health Science Center is proud to be a supporter of this work.”
Read more at our UTHSC news site.