D. E. SMOOT/Muskogee Phoenix
Master Gardener Cedric Johnson, left, teaches Sarayne Leffall, 9, right, and other participants of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center’s after-school program how to transplant vegetable seedlings at the facility’s community garden. Whole Kids Foundation awarded the after-school program a $2,000 grant in support of the center’s edible educational garden at the center. “The community garden provides a wonderful educational opportunity for our students,” said Laura Hazen, program manager at Neighbors Building Neighborhoods, which oversees King Center programs. “This project helps them learn not only about gardening, but about healthy nutrition, math, science and sustainability.” Johnson, a retired educator serves, as the volunteer garden coordinator. Other students who took part planting the spring salad garden and other vegetables include Ciara Edwards, 9, Kourie Tate, 8, Eden Dennis, 10, Sharya Walker, 10, and Tucker Perkins, 12.