We have some big and sad news to share. On Monday we went from a team of 10 to a team of 5 quite suddenly when the federal government ordered AmeriCorps to terminate some of their grants, including the funds that support CAC AmeriCorps in Knoxville.

As you may already know, AmeriCorps has always been an integral part of Beardsley’s history, and was one of the first and longest running CAC AmeriCorps partners.

The impact that this cut has will be felt not only by the five dedicated individuals who committed to a year of work at Beardsley and Beardsley’s remaining staff (most of whom are AmeriCorps alum), but by our community members that interact with Beardsley every day including many hundreds of gardeners throughout the city, neighbors in needs of grocery support, students that learn from the garden, and many, many more.

We are not going away, but we do need your support.

We are fundraising for staff positions so that we can continue donating produce and plants, teaching free classes, managing school gardens, and putting on events such as Harvest Festival and Snow Day. Please consider a donation to Beardsley Farm so that programming isn’t downsized, affecting our most vulnerable populations.

Fresh food for all, ya’ll. No matter what.

We appreciate any and all support including shares of this donation form, our social posts, and/or sharing your favorite AmeriCorps memory and photos with us, etc. Please email charlotte.rodina@knoxcac.org if you would like to discuss ways you can help.

Thank you!

The Beardsley Farm Team

Beardsley.Farm@KnoxCAC.org

Beardsley's Staff Support Campaign