growgreencountry

It's Market Time!

2010-07-01T16:24:00.001-07:00

The Farmer's Markets are going strong all over town! Our volunteers are taking their posts and delivering fresh veggies to John 3:16 Mission every Saturday by collecting what the markets have left at closing time. Most of our donations last year came from these wonderfully generous growers and were delivered by loving hands. We are so happy to welcome Mike Tolson to our list of drivers!
Thank you everyone and I'm very excited to see what this season brings!

First Donation of the 2010 Season!

2010-05-11T10:15:00.000-07:00

Thanks to the Fletcher Family we have the first donation of the season...
11 pounds! I'm sure we'll see more from them since they have a 900 sq ft garden! I remember how excited we were last year to hit the 100 mark of pounds donationed. And when it was all said and done we'd collected over 6,400 lbs. I wonder what this year will bring? I'm so excited to find out!!!
This is a picture of a little Fletcher 'tending' the garden during the off-season last year!

Meet our newest friends!

2010-04-13T10:12:00.001-07:00

Over the past year of starting growgreencountry, the most common thing we've heard is "I'd love to garden, but I don't know how" or "I don't have a very big yard". Well, problem(s) solved!! Stephen Knight of Garden and Give has a complete gardening package that will provide you with all the materials and instructions you'll need to start your own. It's based on a method called Square Foot Gardening. This method provides a high yield garden, grown in a small raised bed. You can check out his website to get all the specifics and to order your very own. You can order a package that's ready to build, or they'll come and install it for you! The very best thing about Stephen and his organization is that for every three garden kits they sell, they'll donate one to a needy family in our community. Just remember growgreencountry when you're harvesting all those prize veggies - we'll pick up the excess and take to other families in need! It's a big full circle process that is so much fun to be a part of! Visit www.gardenandgive.com
Happy Gardening!!

Meeting Cancelled!

2010-03-26T10:00:00.001-07:00

I am so sorry to announce that we need to cancel Saturday's meeting (March 27th) at John 3:16's Youth and Family Center. We'll let you know of the rescheduled date soon. Sorry if this caused anyone any inconvenience!

You're Invited!

2010-03-13T11:42:00.000-08:00

To: Anyone who's interested in doing pick-ups from Farmer's Markets

What: A meeting to chat about the upcoming season and a quick tour around the Mission's Youth and Family Center.

Where: John 3:16 Mission's Youth and Family Center @ 2027 N. Cincinnati Ave.

When: Saturday March 27th at 10am

rsvp and questions to growgreencountry@yahoo.com

Thank you so much! We hope to see you there!

COMING SOON...

2010-02-24T13:52:00.000-08:00

Stay tuned for more info about our Gardening Party coming up! Even if you've NEVER gardened, you'll leave this event with all the tools and knowledge you'll need! Even if you have a home in the city with a small space, you can grow your own organic food! How fun does that sound!?! More details soon...

happy new year!

2010-01-05T11:40:00.001-08:00

it's brooke.

i couldn't resist sneaking in to write a blog after i gave heather all the passwords...hee hee. do you think she'll notice?

my family and i are here in georgia..made it safe and sound after driving 20, yes 20 hours with three children.

i have already noticed farmer market signs and literature around. we stopped and bought some produce last week. remember, its warmer here (not by much lately) so it's a little more available.

anyway, my point is: spring will be here soon! get those green thumbs ready to plant a garden! talk to anyone you know about planting one for the first time/planting extra for the hungry in oklahoma! and if you really think you don't have a green thumb then please consider being a volunteer who picks up produce from the markets and delivers it. it's easy, fun and you get to meet a lot of nice folks!

my husband was looking in his seed stash just the other night getting ideas for our garden. it's really awesome to walk outside and pick a salad for dinner. and it's healthy. and cheaper. and you know where your food has been {and hasn't been.}

so, as we start a new year i encourage you to add growgreencountry to your goals for 2010!

until next time i sneak on {unless she changes the password!}

stay warm my fellow okies ~ i miss you.

love, brooke

i included a pic of our new property...those are pine trees...really tall pine trees. you can click onthe pic to see it larger if you wish.

Good Bye!

2009-11-02T18:03:00.000-08:00

This is harder for me to type than I anticipated. My family and I will be moving to Georgia soon. Having been "Okie Grown" I am sad to leave Oklahoma, the only home I've ever known but, excited for a family adventure. I have met many wonderful, down-to-earth, happy, giving and fun people in growgreencountry's first year. I have been humbled and filled with awe and love witnessing people going out of their way to help. I have realized how truly blessed my family and I are. I have learned to not take anything for granted. I have respect for John 3:16 and the way they run their programs. I also met a life long friend along the way.

I will still be in the "loop" offering ideas and any help I can. My family and I plan to visit...and maybe bring some Georgia goodies with us when we come. :) Heather has many plans for growgreencounty in the future....I'll let her share the big news when it's time.

Thank you all for teaching me along this journey. For helping and believing in us and our ideas. Thank you so much for giving of your time, money, energy, veggies and love.
God bless you all~
With Love,
Brooke

Volunteer of the Month!

2009-11-02T17:57:00.001-08:00

I'm very pleased to introduce you to our volunteer of the month Mandy Dooley. She is always happy to fill in where and when ever we need her. She is a 26 year old insurance/account manager for Rich & Cartmill. She's also played a huge role in her family's steakhouse Dooley's Angus Inn located on Main Street in Broken Arrow. She loves her family and helping in her community. She's pictured above with her boyfriend Tyler.

Thank you so much Mandy for your time - We really appreciate you!!!

Last Saturday!

2009-10-18T19:04:00.000-07:00

Wow...we just got a voicemail from Linda...she delivered 117 lbs. last Saturday from the Jenks market...way to go Linda!!!

Thank you so much for your dedication!

2009-10-09T16:41:00.000-07:00

Linda delivered 72 pounds of fresh, healthy food to feed the hungry on Saturday from the Jenks market~

Saturday

2009-10-06T19:11:00.000-07:00

Mandy and Tyler collected 104 pounds from the Broken Arrow market!

Harvest season is coming to an end. This will give us time to plan for spring and summer 2010!! We have a bushel full of awesome volunteers and growers...thank you so much to each and every one of you. There is no way Heather and I could grow over 6,000 pounds of fresh food or be at 4 markets at the same time!

Thank you for making growgreencountry's first year a complete success! You are a blessing!! The seeds of kindness (and veggies :) you have sowed will make a big difference!

We will continue to update the blog with donations as they come in and updates...

Tuesday

2009-09-29T13:17:00.000-07:00

The kids and I headed to the downtown market today. We collected about 30lbs of tomatoes, green beans and radishes from Ona, Wabee and the Yang farm!
:)

Saturday Cont'd

2009-09-28T20:54:00.001-07:00

Linda Perry picked up 53 pounds from the jenks market (thanks ona and cara!) on saturday!!
The markets run until the end of October or the first freeze...here in Oklahoma you never know when that may be!

Saturday!

2009-09-26T17:04:00.001-07:00

Heather was certainly a busy bee today. She made her way to the Broken Arrow and Claremore market. She also collected some home-grown goodies from Wanda Jameson.

Today's poundage?
268 pounds bringing us PAST the 3 ton mark!!!!

:)

Just got a text from Mandy Dooley - they delivered about 40 pounds from the Pearl farmers' market on Thursday!! :)

Tuesday/Wednesday Delivery

2009-09-23T06:06:00.000-07:00

It was a team effort to pull of today's pickup and delivery. We met Rex (one of the growers) near our home (i had an ill child) to pick up the goodies from the downtown market. (Haylee, myself and another volunteer couldn't make it to the market yesterday!) Rex was kind enough to meet us. When I got home, there was a sack of okra and peppers on the front porch from Mrs. Kay Adams. I took all of the collected goodies with some of our okra mixed in to Haylee last night so she can take it to the Missions today. Phew! That's a mouthful. I think it illustrates what our volunteers will do in order to feed the hungry some healthy food!

Thank you to all of our dedicated volunteers, we appreciate you!

48 lbs. of tomatoes, peppers and okra!

Saturday

2009-09-20T13:07:00.001-07:00

There no doubt about it - too much rain can be a bad thing when it comes to gardening. One of our growers couldn't even get in his fields to harvest melons due to the mud and muck. But, that did not stop our volunteers from going out and collecting what they could.

Linda collected 51 pounds from the Jenks market.
Mandy collected 290 pounds from the Broken Arrow market.

Saturday's total = 341 pounds!!

Thanks, everyone!!!

Broken Arrow Market

2009-09-16T12:27:00.001-07:00

Here are some pictures from the Broken Arrow market.

gracie and annie posing with the watermelons they get to take to the missions!

This is pepper the dog. He loves to relax and watch all the happenings! His owner is Catherine Peters, one of the growers who donates to growgreen.

This is Mr. Larry Moss. He donates his excess to feed the hungry!

Mr. Rolland McDaris gave many melons and smiles!

This is Bob Warwick. He always has a very nice selection of veggies to take to the Missions.

Many thanks to all of our greengrowers!!!

Downtown Tuesday

2009-09-15T12:12:00.000-07:00

Haylee collected 70 lbs of spinach, eggplant, cucumbers etc!!!

She also dropped off about 30 pounds of purple tomatoes, bell peppers and banana peppers from a creek county master gardener that the Fletcher's dropped off and from our garden.

Todays total is 100 lbs! yipee!
We're getting geared up for a great weekend!
We will have volunteers at the jenks, owasso, claremore and broken arrow market!!!

Thank you to our awesome volunteers!! :)

Saturday!

2009-09-12T12:35:00.000-07:00

Here are the totals for today:

Heather's brother picked up 293 pounds from the Broken Arrow market today.
Mary picked up 75 pounds from the claremore market.
Linda picked up 106 pounds from the Jenks market.
Mandy collected and dropped off 45 pounds!

The total is 519 pounds!

THANK YOU growers and volunteer drivers!!!!!!!

Thursday

2009-09-10T12:37:00.000-07:00

It looks like it's another fried okra night! mmmm...
Heather dropped off 3 full sacks (30 lbs!) of fresh okra!!!

Tuesday!

2009-09-08T13:44:00.000-07:00

It's already Tuesday again! Our growers were ready with their smiles and donations! Collected 58 pounds of fresh food today. 10 pounds of that was okra from our garden my father-in-law harvested. We are getting super close to reacing 5,000 pounds!!
Heather and I have a meeting tonight to brainstorm and a meeting with John 3:16 tomorrow...great things are in store for ggc!

Thanks to all! we wish we could personally hug each and every one of you!!
Brooke

Some pictures from the weekend

2009-09-06T08:55:00.000-07:00

Here is one of our volunteers at a garden in claremore harvesting some melons to donate!

Some growers at the Jenks market who donate: Ona Brown and Cheree Tietz...thank you ladies!

Here are some newbies: Ayumi donated her time to collect the produce and take some pictures. Cara Henderson is new to donating to ggc! Thank you both!!

here are the squash that was donated earlier that day..they don't waste any time!!!

This okra came from the Broken Arrow market earlier in the day...I recognize the brown paper basket on the counter! :)

Growgreencountry had an amazing weekend. Between three markets and two donations from other growers we gathered about 1,006 pounds of fresh food! An anonymous donor also baked many loaves of fresh zuchini bread to take to the missions!!

Here's the breakdown:

A farm in Claremore: 84

Jenks Market: 145

Claremore Market: 101

Broken Arrow Market: 508

Watermelons from the Bass family: 252

God is so good and faithful! :)

Thank you volunteer drivers and growers for your hard work and time!

Downtown Farmers' Market

2009-09-01T20:15:00.000-07:00

Today is Tuesday which means someone got to venture to downtown Tulsa...what fun! Today it was Haylee. She actually works downtown which makes it super convenient. She collected about 30 pounds of goodies - some of which were home made spices!

Heather and I have each received a phone call for new people wanting to volunteer their time!! We feel it's time to start venturing to other markets until the harvest season's end.

Until next time...

Our busy weekend

2009-08-30T11:53:00.000-07:00

We sent our growgreen volunteer Mandy to the Broken Arrow market on Saturday. It was her first time. Let me just say it is a very good thing she has a SUV and took her boyfriend along with her...she collected 531 pounds of fresh veggies and fruits to feed the hungry!!!

I had some watermelons collected and some produce collected from the Jenks Famer's market which totalled 276 pounds.

This brings us WAY over our goal of 3,000 lbs! It looks like our next goal is 2 tons of food...we are more than half way there!!!

Thank you so much Mandy (I hope we didn't scare you off:)!
Thanks goes out to all of our growers and their generosity...they are all so kind and friendly!

Friday!

2009-08-27T19:40:00.000-07:00

Who doesn't love Fridays? For growgreencountry it means a 100 lb donation grown by Carol Haught and delivered by our wonderful volunteer Linda. It also means that we will be busy on Saturday going to markets to collect fresh food for the hungry!
Do you think we can make it over 3,000 lbs. this weekend?!?!

Tuesday Donation!

2009-08-25T16:54:00.000-07:00

Heather and I both made it to John 3:16 today with fruits and veggies. Between the two of us we dropped off 101 pounds of fresh, healthy food!! I can not believe that we are well on our way to 3,000 pounds of food!!!
Thank you to all of our growers, drivers and supporters!!

Saturday Donations

2009-08-22T18:02:00.000-07:00

Linda picked up 109 pounds from the Broken Arrow Market!!
She mentioned that the cooks in the John 3:16 kitchen said that they are eating fresh veggies almost every day and "THANK YOU!!" :)

Watermelons!!!

2009-08-22T16:38:00.000-07:00

Summer just isn't summer without watermelon seeds and sticky hands no matter who you are. I was happy to purchase a watermelon on my way home today from a sweet husband and wife team. Of course, I told them about growgreencountry and how I would love to pick up any extra they had any time! I was thrilled to get a call about an hour later...they had 40 left over to donate!!!
So, my family and I loaded up in the suburban and picked up the melons...we'll take them to John 3:16 Missions in the morning. This puts us WAY over the 2,000 pound (ONE TON!) marker Heather and I set as our "unofficial" goal. She said, "You know, I bet we can collect one ton by the end of the summer..." I wasn't so sure...I am sometimes a bit skeptical.
So, here we are...past the one ton marker delivering fresh fruits and veggies to the hungry in Oklahoma...and we couldn't do it without YOU!!!! Thank you!!!

Here's Gracie striking a pose!

Weekend Deliveries

2009-08-15T15:26:00.001-07:00

Linda, one of our volunteer drivers dropped of 89 pounds on Friday evening collected from various growers. Saturday Linda delivered 118 pounds collected from the Broken Arrow Market!!!
Total # of pounds of fresh veggies the hungry ate this weekend: 207!
Thank you Linda and thank you growers!!!!

(This puts us at almost a TON of freshness delivered!!!!!!!:)

Tuesday!

2009-08-11T13:59:00.000-07:00

Stephanie Hutchison took 25 lbs. of zukes and squash to the Missions this morning. It is her first time to have a garden and we are thrilled she chose to share with growgreen! Thanks so much Stephanie!!!

Haylee collected about 40 lbs. from the downtown market this afternoon!

We are well on our way to donating a TON (literally) of fresh veggies to feed the hungry in OK!!! Yipee!

Saturday!

2009-08-09T16:41:00.001-07:00

Heather and her family picked up 258 lbs. of goodies from the Broken Arrow and Jenks farmer's markets!!!!

We also received a call from a creek county master gardener who had 60 lbs. of fresh cucumbers to donate!!!!

It's almost time to plant for fall...carrots, turnips, lettuce, spinach, radish, beets, onions and kohlrabi's. Please remember we will be continuing growgreencountry through the cooler months!!

Thank you all for your support and for helping make growgreencountry a success! :)

Thursday's Donation

2009-08-06T10:06:00.000-07:00

Heather made today's donation - 33.5 pounds of squash and zucchini's from Wanda's garden!
Thank you ladies!! :)

It's Hot!

2009-08-04T13:17:00.000-07:00

Silly me left the house with water for each of my children and none for me...by the time we reached the Missions I was begging for a bottle of water. The farmer's market is mostly in the shade but the heat...it's just dog gone hot out there!

We took our 65 pounds of squash and zukes and headed to the downtown farmer's market today. As always, the growers were full of smiles. There are dogs (bear and pepper), people chatting, flowers, veggies and fruit. I enlisted one of the grower's son named William to help me carry the bags of goodies collected while I attempted to keep up with my three kiddos.

We gathered roughtly 50 lbs of produce from four growers!!! Cucumbers, tomatoes, squash, swiss chard and okra! Rex is pictured above...he always has some good stuff to donate.
I say roughly because as mentioned above, it was hot. I have a scale in our car but at this point I just wanted to drop of the goodies and get some hydration for my red cheeks.

Thank you to our growers! YOU are making a difference.
Thanks to the missions for the bottles of gatorade and h2o. ;)

P.S. I forgot to mention last week that a bag of processed venison was donated by the Fletcher family. Ben "harvested" the yummy meat! Thanks, Ben!

Today's Donation

2009-07-28T13:16:00.001-07:00

Kevin with his mama.

What a beautiful day it was! Today's donation to John 3:16 consisted of squash, zukes, green beans and cucumbers from the Adams and DeLong family and two growers (one is pictured above) from the downtown market. The mission received 87 lbs. of donated produce!!

The downtown farmer's market has a very nice set up in the shade. If you've never been I encourage you to go if you're in the neighborhood...just next to the PAC on Tuesdays until 2:00.
Everyone is very friendly and they have great things to offer!

THANK YOU for your donations to feed the hungry in Oklahoma...YOU are making a difference!!

Greengrower for July

2009-07-27T08:49:00.000-07:00

This is one of our cutest greengrowers. He's always full of energy and smiles. Please meet Colten. He has grown and picked an abundance of squash and zukes for growgreencountry (with a little help from his parents:) In a simple act, our kid greengrowers are being taught the importance of helping those in need and the patience and hard work gardening requires.

Our thanks to Colten and his family for their dedication and being part of growgreencountry!! You are making a difference in Oklahoma!!

Ta da!

2009-07-24T10:29:00.000-07:00

Greg Mann of Mann productions created this beautiful logo for us. We had a meeting with him where we described our likes/dislikes and explained what growgreen is all about. We love the heart made out of veggies because growgreencountry is all about love. Loving not only people but also the love of helping, gardening, oklahoma and each other. This logo will be printed on recipe cards, business cards and anything else Heather and I can dream up!
Thank you Greg for working with us to achieve a design we have "grown" to love!! :)

Out and about

2009-07-22T09:10:00.000-07:00

Our total pounds of produce donated in climbing!
Haylee collected 32 pounds from the downtown farmer's market tuesday and Heather dropped of 26 pounds of zukes today!!

We got the opportunity to work with an awesome graphic desinger named Greg Mann. He created two logos that fit us. Will post soon.

Thanks to all of our supporters! :)

Rainbow Salsa

2009-07-19T20:45:00.000-07:00

Every summer my family loves to eat this fresh, healthy salsa...and it's easy!!!
Here's how to make it!

Tomatoes! Red, yellow and green...whatever you can find!
Cilantro - lots!!
Onion
Minced Garlic
Lime juice
Stevia (or sugar) - just a little
salt and pepper
Jalapeno - if desired - i don't use this for the kids

Mix. It's always better the next day after it "marinates." Mmmmm....

recipes!!

2009-07-19T20:36:00.000-07:00

The excess produce given to the missions (where the homeless go) will be passed to the youth and family center. There, food baskets are passed out to families in need. Here is one of the recipes that will be put in the food baskets.

Squash on the side

1-2 yellow squash
1-2 zucchini
1/2 lb. of mushrooms
2 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil or
vegetable oil
1 Tbs. finely chopped or minced garlic

Preheat skillet with olive oil using medium heat. Add garlic and saute for 1-2 minutes without browing. (Turn down heat if needed.)
Slice squash and zucchini into 1/4 inch slices. Slice the mushrooms a little bit thinner. Put veggies in skillet. Saute until desired doneness using salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!

Thanks to Kim for collecting and typing out our recipes!!!

Serving

2009-07-13T18:44:00.000-07:00

We had a chance to serve dinner this evening at the John 3:16 Missions. What a great experience. Heather and I were joined by JaLynn, Haylee and Sharon. We served 89 dinners I believe. The number originally started at 60 something and kept climbing.

Here is a picture of what remains of the 820 lbs. of produce that was donated last friday!

Have you ever seen someone having so much fun sanitizing a table?? That is Haylee. She covers picking up produce downtown for us.

Below is Sharon and JaLynn getting the iced teas ready.

Brooke and Haylee (we are sister-in-laws!)

Here's Heather serving up the plates of "noodle surprise."

And of course zukes were on the menu cooked with a little onion and spices!

Haylee, Brooke, JaLynn and Heather having a great time.

This is Kenny. He is going through John 3:16's program to get back on his feet. He is 3 weeks into it and has about one year and 5 months to go. He is one of the hardest workers I've seen. Way to go Kenny!!!

Here's JaLynn serving tea. I see that gentleman is saving the best for last on his plate!!

JaLynn is one of our greengrowers and a master gardener!! And, prego with her third baby! Wow!!

Thank you to all for taking the time to serve with us tonight. It was a lot of fun!

WOW!!!!

2009-07-13T11:46:00.001-07:00

Someone anonymously dropped off about 820 lbs. of produce to John 3:16 over the weekend and said they were from growgreen!!!!! We are beyond excited about it!!!
A few of us are going to the Missions tonight to serve dinner to the homeless...I bet they will be eating fresh tomatoes and steamed squash!! We can not wait to witness the impact we/you are making. I can't wait to take pictures!!!!!
THANK YOU who ever you are! You are making a difference in Oklahoma!

Heather and I met with the graphic designer today. We brainstormed and came up with some great ideas. He's working on some logo designs. How 'bout growgreen t-shirts for everyone? :)

Latest Delivery!

2009-07-11T12:58:00.000-07:00

i was very excited to get the chance to take my little brother christopher bones to the Missions for our latest delivery (41 lbs!). i am in awe every single time i go there because every one is so friendly. heather and i are the only females i have seen there so far. the men open doors and offer to carry the baskets of food. i heard one gentleman say to another, "We get fresh veggies tonight!!!" it thrills me to be able to deliver your fresh, healthy food!!! thank you for being a part of growgreencountry!!

This just in!

2009-07-10T09:39:00.000-07:00

Studies reveal that babies who are raised on healthy fresh fruits and vegetables are happier and messier eaters!

*All studies conducted by Heather and Brooke in a controlled environment using their own children as guinea pigs. Please feel free to try this at home. Aubry is seen above with squash seeds covering her cute little face. :)

The 411

2009-07-08T20:17:00.000-07:00

Harvest time is upon us. Today, I had three families drop off produce for John 3:16. Squash, zukes, cukes, tomatoes, okra, peppers and onions...it all looks like it was grown with love and delicious!! I'm planning on taking my little brother (11 yrs. old) with me to make the delivery, I could use some extra muscles. Thank you to our awesome growers!!!

Kim, one of our greengrowers, has been working on recipes for the food baskets. They will be passed out to families in need. I will post some of them soon - they are healthy, quick and yummy! Heather and I are working on getting them printed soon. We are also working with our contact at John 3:16 and a designer on a logo for growgreencountry.

Next week, we and a few of growgreen's volunteers are going to serve food at the Missions. I hope to get great pics for the blog. I would LOVE, LOVE to see them eating some of the donated food!

Don't forget to tell you friends and family about growgreencountry!!
Brooke

Update!!

2009-07-01T18:18:00.000-07:00

Haylee went to the downtown farmer's market on Tuesday and was given 41 lbs. of produce for john 3:16!
And, Wanda Jameson gave 28 lbs. of zucchini!!!
Our thanks goes out to the growers and volunteer drivers...you are making a difference in Oklahoma!!!

Also, look for us on Channel 8 Friday at 9am on Good Day Tulsa!

Mom on the move

2009-06-25T15:55:00.000-07:00

Our own Heather is definitely a mom on the move! She has been featured on 918mom's website. click here to check it out! Way to go Heather!!

Aren't Molly and Aubry adorable??!! :)

Second Delivery!

2009-06-23T13:28:00.000-07:00

My husband harvested 19 lbs! of carrots, squash, zukes and radishes for growgreencountry this morning!! Thanks to him for his support and hard work towards our program. Truth be told, he does the gardening in the family. I just support his efforts...take him ice water, lunch and supervise...hee hee.

Anyway, Heather and I are VERY excited that harvest time is soon approaching. John 3:16 was very pleased to be getting some fresh produce today. Some of the guys in the kitchen did not know what the names of some of the veggies were...I was delighted to let them know!

That brings our total of pounds donated to 27lbs as of today!

Please don't forget to email us your favorite "fresh or green" recipes!!

Brooke

Recipes!

2009-06-15T19:29:00.000-07:00

We are collecting recipes!!! What are your favorite easy recipes using fresh ingredients from the garden? Do you have any special gardening tips or tricks? Let us know! We are collecting recipes for a variety of projects. Some of them will go to the families in need who will be receiving the fresh veggies from you!!!
PLEASE email us your favorite "green" recipes at growgreencountry@yahoo.com
Thanks! ;)

Volunteer of the month

2009-06-12T06:36:00.000-07:00

Please meet our downtown volunteer Haylee. She is responsible for collecting all of the fruits and veggies from downtown Tulsa and taking them to John 3:16. Haylee loves to stay plugged in to her community by volunteering for a variety of causes. She loves to travel and just returned home from a 10 day trip to Peru! She was one of our first volunteers to sign up with growgreencountry and we really appreciate her willingness. She is seen here with her adorable son Trey. Thanks, Haylee!

If you work downtown and have an abundance from your garden, just let us know! :)

Help spread the word!

2009-06-09T20:14:00.001-07:00

We have growgreencountry business cards and postcards ready to be handed out, mailed or displayed. A few locations that may be good is your local feed store, farmer's market, Atwoods, friends, family, co-workers, bulletin boards etc. Please email growgreencountry@yahoo.com with your name and address and we'll mail some off to you!! Thanks for your support!
Brooke and Heather

Community Spirit Magazine

2009-06-03T11:46:00.000-07:00

Look for us in the June issue!!! Click here to find out where you can pick one up at a location near you or click here to download a version. A huge thanks for Tom McCloud for taking an interest in growgreecountry...he has been VERY generous!

What's going on

2009-06-01T18:57:00.001-07:00

We are patiently waiting for harvest time! My kids love to run outside everyday and see how much their garden grew overnight!! Maybe Heather has a little garden of her own in the making ...if so we may just take a field trip over there one day and take pics! :)

If you'd like to donate some of your harvest, we have volunteers to pick up the goodies in these areas:
Catoosa
Owasso
Coweta
Collinsville
Sapulpa
Glenpool
Sand Springs
Jenks
Kiefer
Kellyville
Broken Arrow
Tulsa
Downtown Tulsa

Please let us know if you'd like to be a volunteer driver (we still need a few!) or if you don't see your town listed.
We are getting very excited!! :)

New to gardening? Small Spaces?

2009-05-27T10:20:00.000-07:00

I paid Molly to snap the ends off some green beans. It was totally worth two dollars because I was getting a late start on dinner. She could make money while she watched Arthur - her two favorite things at once! She saved some of the beans and we put them in little cups with wet paper towels so we could 'grow' them in our window. Her excitement from monitoring and caring for these little sprouts was amazing. It inspired me to check into container gardening. We (by we, I mean my husband Derrick) had a small garden at our last house, but at this home we're surrounded by trees. In my research, I found two sites that might be helpful to you if you're in my same situation. If you are an avid gardener, please excuse my ignorance and humor me at my attempts to join your club! ;)

Heather

http://www.kidsgardening.com/
http://gardeninginsmallspaces.com/

2009-05-20T19:32:00.000-07:00

This is George. He is a husband, father of two, pastor, fireman, business owner and greengrower. The Surrell family have committed to donating some of their harvest to growgreencountry. We stopped by station #12 of the Tulsa Fire Department so I could snap a picture of him and give the firemen some well deserved cookies. George graciously gave the kids and me a tour. We learned quite a bit about the truck, hoses, their schedule and such. We met the other firemen on that shift, saw their kitchen, beds, weights and lockers. But, what impressed me most was their garden! Yes, firestation #12 has a garden! It was planted by their "driver" Kevin and George. They eat the veggies there, take some home to their families AND give some to neighbors who are hungry during harvest season! That is what growgreen is all about...feeding the hungry in Oklahoma. Way to go guys!! Thank you for your hospitality and being part of growgreencountry!
Brooke

This is only half of their veggie garden! They still do good even though
the beds don't have full sun.

And I can't forget them!!

May greengrower of the month!

2009-05-19T19:05:00.001-07:00

Heather and I had the privilege to visit one of our greengrowers today. Please meet the Fletcher family. The lettuce from our first donation to John 3:16 was lovingly grown by them. Heather called it a "basket of love" on the radio. It was lovingly washed and septerated into seperate ziplocks ready to be delivered!
JaLynn is actually a master gardener and a stay at home mama to two beautiful little girls and a baby on the way! She and her husband have created an awesome 900 sq. ft. garden. We saw everything from blueberries to cotton growing! (The cotton came from her grandma's garden...that warms my heart!)

The corn, squash, zukes, green beans and lots of other goodies are just starting to peek up through the earth. They get the kids involved whenever possible...gardening is great for children! And, they have also gotten their parents involved with growgreen! The Fletcher's have big hearts and we are truly appreciative of their hard work and enthusiasm. Thank you Ben and JaLynn for all your labors of love!

Lillie and Sallie are posing on the Obelisk that was handmade by their daddy!

Lillie is showing off her treasures...in a shell...doesn't get much cuter than that!

New pictures

2009-05-16T12:27:00.001-07:00

I just added some new pics to the slideshow on the very bottom of this page.
If you'd like yours added, just email them to us at growgreencountry@yahoo.com.
Thanks!
Brooke

Our first donation of produce!!!

2009-05-13T12:08:00.000-07:00

Pastor Sean from John 3:16, Heather & Brooke

Today was a special day for us. Heather and I took 8 lbs. worth of salad makings to John 3:16 this afternoon! The lettuce was lovingly grown and prepared by JaLynn Fletcher and my husband harvested the carrots this morning. We were thrilled to make our first donation! Lunch was being cooked and they were going to serve the fresh salad right along with the lasagna.

We were lucky enough to meet a few people and to be given a behind the scenes tour. Again, just like the family and youth center, this facility is very clean. They sterilize everything everyday by the sound (and smell) of it...I love the smell of clean! Everyone was very friendly. If you are not familiar with what John 3:16 does please keep reading. A whopping 350 meals a day are prepared in a 200 sq. ft. kitchen!! That is amazing in itself to me. The meals are for not only the mission but for other programs as well. The homeless can get a bed to sleep on, a shower and a meal. It is evident that John 3:16 wants to feed not only their bodies but their spirits as well. They have a 5 step program that one can choose to go through. This includes work of all kinds and trips to encourage trust, communication, teamwork etc. They also have a women's center where women are counseled, nourished etc. It's fantastic that people choosing to go to John 3:16 for help have a chance to get back on their feet!!

The John 3:16 Kitchen

Heather and I are very excited to be a part of what they are doing. We are very grateful to be given this opportunity and for all the help and support we have received. And remember, every time you contribute to growgreencountry, YOU ARE making a difference! We are still in need of volunteers to spread the word, grow food and to drive our donations to John 3:16. Our thanks to John 3:16 and to every one of our greengrowers and volunteers!

Keep your eyes open for us in the Community Spirit Magazine soon!!

Our 'lil growers Aubry & Annie!

A note from Heather!

2009-05-03T16:36:00.000-07:00

The other day my daughter casually asks me where the compost bin is. She had the crusts off a sandwich and she's looking for the place to put them. I've never had a compost bin, pile or corner. I've never even had a conversation about compost. I looked at her holding her crusts, trying to not waste them, trying to make a difference with her toss-outs and I felt guilty that I didn't have one...this compost...thing.

I recycle, try to reduce and re-use things. I buy organic foods when possible and try to teach my kids healthy eating habits. But sometimes I feel overwhelmed that I'm not doing enough. Eventually, I’ll have a garden and then I could probably use a compost bin. Eventually I’ll even learn what to do with one! Some days I’m tempted to pass out hot dogs with processed cheese food on WHITE buns and scream "I give up!"

I figured that along my learning process, I could grab some friends and make it a team effort. Growgreencountry is all about that. Teaching people how to produce their own, very nutritious and very yummy food. First we'll start with sharing the excess of those who already know the benefits! We'll learn how to prepare it in its healthiest form, and then we'll learn how to grow it for ourselves. I like the idea of passing this to my kids. I like the idea of helping neighbors who are having a tough time getting food on their table each day. I hope this gained skill will then be passed through families and generations.

I especially like the idea that we can all come together for this purpose! Wanna come along?

This just in...

2009-04-29T11:06:00.000-07:00

Emily, an RN in Tampa Florida heard about growgreencountry. She went to her local food bank and talked with them about getting a similar program started in her community! Thanks Kim for spreading the word. Every time we tell someone about growgreen a seed is planted and not the veggie kind!

What growgreencountry means to me...

2009-04-23T12:33:00.001-07:00

I (Brooke) remember last summer standing at the kitchen sink. My husband brings in a huge bucket of fresh picked okra. Our freezer was full of cut okra to be eaten in the fall and winter. And, we had eaten fried okra for several nights. Our garden not only feeds us but my in-laws as well. They live close by and tend the garden too. After sharing, cooking and freezing, we STILL had okra coming out of our ears. In fact, I never wanted to see another piece of okra again. I distinctly remember saying to my husband, "I wish I knew where to take this...to help those in need...those who are hungry!!" Well, I'm happy to say the solution has been found!

Our desire is to find families/growers who feel the same way. You can only eat so many tomatoes, zucchini, squash, turnips and have I mentioned okra yet? Ironically, after selling or giving some away to friends and family there is still more! I really feel this program will allow people to feel good about where their home grown food is going. And you just can't beat us picking it up for you! Don't forget you can always throw down a few extra seeds and mark it "to feed the hungry" with your kids!! I will post pictures of the food being donated, dropped off and eaten...YOU can make a difference!

I am also very excited because of the nutritional quality of food we will be serving the hungry. When Heather and I were at the Youth and Family center, we saw lots of Ramen noodles and canned good items. Those items are much better than having nothing to eat but they are not nutritious. Much of the produce we collect will go to families who have children. Children need fresh food for the mind and bodies to develop properly. The benefits of fruits and veggies are not only for children but for everyone. We all need the vitamins, minerals and enzymes that can only be found in fresh fruits and vegetables.

John 3:16 has a chef who I've heard can make a meal out of pretty much anything. I hope to meet him when we go to serve at the mission soon. Please know that what you take the time and energy to grow WILL benefit the hungry...there are hungry people in Oklahoma...we have seen the need."Okies" have big hearts. Almost every person I talk to about growgreencountry shares their favorite recipes, gardening tips or a basket full of enthusiasm. A teacher from my daughter's school took time to hand write her mother's recipe for pickled okra...I must have told her about my story of okra in a previous conversation. :)

Thank you to all those who are interested, participating and supporting us...together we will make a difference!

Thank You!

2009-04-20T17:26:00.000-07:00

Our thanks goes out to Missy Fox and her sweet boys for being growgreencountry's first financial contributor. They have definitely planted a seed for harvest! :)

Go out and be green!

2009-04-15T12:30:00.000-07:00

This month is earth month. April 22nd is earth day.
Heather and I will be out this month spreading the word about growgreencountry. We can't wait to meet some more awesome Okies with big hearts. (Just look for two happy ladies followed by 5 "little greengrowers.")
Here's what's going on around town if you want to get out and support the community, be green and have some fun!

Sand Springs Herb Fair
Saturday, April 18th
9-4. This is a big festival.
(The kids had a great time last year
in their kid's area.)

Jenks Herb and Plant Festival
Saturday, April 25th
8-5. Near downtown Jenks.

Don't forget the Farmer's Markets:

Cherry Street Farmer's Market - Saturdays until October 4th.
15 & Peoria 7 am - 11 am opens April 12!
Contact Kim Smith for info: 519-9383

Muskogee Farmer's Market Wed. & Sat. thru October.
5th & Okmulgee - 8 am - 1 pm open April 19!
Contact Doug Walton for info: 918-686-6939

More markets opening soon!! :)

Our "greengrower" of the month

2009-04-10T11:56:00.000-07:00

Kim with her peas. I heard her say, "Oh...they are already getting curly Q's!!!"

The kids and I had the pleasure to visit one of our "greengrowers" today. I can honestly say I have never met anyone so excited about gardening. Kim and her mother-in-law Janet from Sapulpa love to grow veggies, herbs and by the sound of it, anything! Kim and her daughter "Tink" showed us around their property (three generations of gardeners...way cool!) The largest of their gardens is roughly 75' X 100'. They have peas, onions, potatoes planted and they will soon be greeted by beets, carrotts, lettuce, kale and more! We learned that one potato eye can produce 12 potatoes! Now that's a great return on a simple investment! The irrigation system is hooked up to their pond so it not only saves money but is free from the chemicals and whatnot in city water. They have horses, ponies, llamas and soon to have goats and chickens. The family is excited to help feed the hungy in Oklahoma and be a part of "growgreencountry." They display hearts for nutrition, their community and getting the kids involved...what a great combination! Thanks Kim for you generosity today! (Look to the right for an easy, healthy recipe from Kim!)

Kim and "Tink" with their huge garden.

Kim takes the opportunity to teach my daugheter Annie a little about peas, after all, Annie is our "sweet pea!"

This is Ike. He's just so cute I couldn't resist...

It's time to plant those seeds!!

2009-04-08T14:49:00.001-07:00

Your first step in joining forces with us is to plant those seeds!
The second step is to email us at growgreencountry@yahoo.com
so we can determine where our pick up locations will be! Easy!

Where will it go?

2009-04-06T19:03:00.000-07:00

So, you may wonder where all the fruits, veggies and herbs will go once they are collected. They will be taken to the John 3:16 center down town Tulsa where they will be used and dispersed. Did you know that John 3:16 makes 180,000 meals a year?! We visited their family and youth center recently. Heather and I were impressed with how clean and organized the entire building was. The children's classrooms were painted with bright colors, there was an education room for adult women and even a new playground outside. We even met a sweet lady who has volunteered there for 50+ years. We peeked into the food storage room. We looked in the freezer. We did not see an abundance of fresh fruits and veggies. We want to change that and we can with your help! Some of the produce we collect will be cooked right away to make fresh, healthy meals for the hungry. The rest of the produce will go in food baskets given to families in need. It is our desire for each family to also receive a recipe card to teach them what to do with the yummy squash (or whatever it may be!) These are only a few of the outreaches of John 3:16. Please head on over to their website to learn more! Click here.

Our Story

2009-04-06T18:51:00.000-07:00

I (Brooke) casually emailed Heather some coupon tips for her morning show on KXOJ. She happened to read our family blog and noticed we garden with our kids. She had been pondering and idea someone mentioned to her months ago about feeding the hungry with abundance from the garden. But, she doesn't know anything about gardening....hey, she said it herself. Truth be told, I don't know a thing about press releases or radio so we make a great team. She contacted me with a simple idea. I fell in love with it and here we are. We are passionate about feeding the hungry nutritious food and our community. With your help, we can make a BIG difference. Thank you for taking time to visit our blog.

Who in the world are we?

2009-03-31T19:14:00.000-07:00

This is Heather. She is a full time wife, mother of two daughters and works part time as a radio host for KXOJ. (check out her morning show!) She has lived in Oklahoma for most of her life. Heather is fun, down to earth and has a big heart.

I'm Brooke. I'm a full time wife and mom to two daughters and one son. I'm pursuing a degree in naturopathy (in my spare time:) I was born and raised in Oklahoma and grew up "playing in the dirt."

Our Mission

2009-03-31T19:04:00.000-07:00

Our mission is to feed the hungry in Oklahoma. We have seen the need ourselves. We believe that if every grower (big or small) donates just a fraction of their crops, it will make a HUGE impact. Fresh, homegrown food does wonders for the body and spirit. We want to appeal not only to Oklahoma farmers but to families as well. We would love to see kids getting involved. There are so many good lessons for children of every age to learn not only from feeding the hungry but from gardening. We would also like to create community gardens, gardening education classes and more!
It is my goal to keep to blog updated so people can see they are making a difference and that things are happening! We want to make this experience fun and convenient for all those involved. We are starting small but have many exciting ideas for the years to come!

We need you!

2009-03-31T18:55:00.000-07:00

Here's how you can help.

*Email us and let us know you'd like to grow food to feed the hungry. We will set up a pick up time and location to make it easy and convenient for you!! We come to you!!!

*Donate your time - We need volunteer drivers! We will try to make sure you stay in your area. You would need to pick up the produce and deliver it to John 3:16 downtown Tulsa. We will need drivers on Saturdays for sure and maybe for more days of the week depending on the response. Details to follow. Please contact us and let us know you're willing to be a driver so we can start making plans!

*Tell your friends about growgreencountry. Word of mouth is excellent (and free) advertising!

*Would you love to share your knowledge of gardening with others? Let us know.

*We need volunteers to start community gardens in different areas.

*Be a Sponsor! Like anything, this program will cost $. We are working on a sponsorship program. A minimum of $100 is required to be a sponsor. Details to follow.

*You may make a tax deductible contribution - email us for details!