The Junior League of Greater Princeton is an organization

							FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact: Susan Keeler, Communications VP
609-924-2770 or communications@jlgp.org

 The Junior League of Greater Princeton Dedicates a Healthy Living Garden to Children at
               The Washington Elementary School in Trenton, New Jersey

Princeton, NJ – May, 1, 2008: The Junior League of Greater Princeton (JLGP) recently
announced the dedication of a Community Park and Garden built for the children of Washington
Elementary School in the Chambersburg section of Trenton, NJ. The garden is the result of a
partnership among Isles, The Junior League of Greater Princeton, and the Washington
Elementary School, where Ms. Gloria Jean Tunstall is the Principal.

The Provisional (New Member) Class of the JLGP selected the Trenton-based Isles not-for profit
organization to collaborate with on this project to improve the education and quality of daily
school life for the children. JLGP volunteers worked for more than six months to transform an
unused, blacktop area adjacent to the school into a community park with a pergola and ten large
beds for planting flowers, edible plants, herbs, fruits and vegetables.

”This community garden project goes right to the heart of the JLGP‟s mission to improve our
communities through the effective action of its volunteers,” said Jennifer Barko, the JLGP „s
Provisional Class Project Co-Chair. “We hope that the students of Washington Elementary will
enjoy tending the garden as much as we‟ve enjoyed helping to create it, and that they will
incorporate what they‟ve learned into their daily lives for healthier living.”

A healthy eating cookbook was also created for the children of the school with recipes borrowed
from Kids in the Kitchen, a program conceived by the Association of Junior Leagues International
(AJLI) to educate young children about the importance of healthy food choices. Now in its second
year, Kids in the Kitchen highlights healthy eating through engaging exercises and hands-on
creation of tasty, child-friendly snacks and meals. The cookbook was translated to offer recipes in
both English and Spanish, and 25 copies were donated to the school‟s library.



Garden Dedication Ceremony

A “green” ribbon-cutting ceremony kicked off the festivities on Earth Day, Tuesday, April 22 at
which the garden was officially dedicated to all 360 students at the school. Following the
ceremony, classes of children from pre-kindergarten through sixth grade enjoyed a morning of
outdoor adventure and “green” education. Children were given a bug-trapper for safe, close-up
study of bugs as well as gardening visors and other garden-related paraphernalia. Many children
had their first taste at becoming naturalists and were outfitted with new green garden gloves as
they listened to instruction on the proper planting of flowers, vegetables and plants. The mulch-
covered blacktop, which was designed to encourage an ecological site, attracted several
butterflies on that first morning, much to the children‟s delight.


Washington Elementary operates a summer camp at the school so the garden will have active
use by youth and camp counselors throughout the summer months.


About The Junior League of Greater Princeton

The Junior League of Greater Princeton is an organization of women committed to promoting
voluntarism, developing the potential of women, and improving communities through the effective
action and leadership of trained volunteers. The Junior League of Greater Princeton is a
recognized leader in the community for developing projects and partnerships that increase the
literacy skills of young children and their parents. This has been the focus area for all of their
community service activities in the Greater Princeton area since 2004. The Junior League of
Greater Princeton is able to support training programs, community projects and a community
grants program through fund-raising efforts. Women over the age of 21, committed to
voluntarism, regardless of race, religion or national origin are welcome as members. The Junior
League of Greater Princeton is part of the Association of Junior Leagues International, which
includes 293 Junior Leagues in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Great Britain. For more
information please visit www.jlgp.org.

About Isles

Isles is a nationally recognized community development and environmental organization founded
in 1981 to foster more self-reliant families in healthy, sustainable communities. Each year, Isles‟
staff and more than 300 volunteers reach thousands of central New Jersey residents through
asset-creating, self-help efforts. For the past 27 years, Isles has provided the tools, knowledge
and skills that enable families to help themselves and improve their neighborhood over the long
term. Unlike conventional community development organizations, Isles operates an array of
products and services that communities and families choose to use.

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