“The Davis Farm to School Connection started about 10 years ago with people complaining about school food. Delaine Eastin, the California State Superintendent of Public Instruction at the time, had called for a garden at every school. Farm to school groups were already forming,” explains Jamie. A master gardener, Jamie was involved with gardening at Pioneer Elementary School and naturally became involved in the school to farm movement.

The Davis Farm to School Connection operates on the principle that “children and adults take pleasure in the natural world and the fruits of its soil, enjoy the ritual of the table and engage all of their senses when they eat, garden or visit a farm.” The Davis Farm to School Connection engages children and adults “in the seed-to-table cycle which consists of six steps: sowing, growing, reaping, preparing, eating and recycling.”

Through gardening and visiting farms, “children and adults discover the joy of growing, preparing and eating fresh fruits and vegetables, and participating in daily outdoor activities, which are critical to their mental and physical well being.” Finally, through participation in this cycle, children and adults learn to become stewards of the Earth, and feel “that the community values the seed-to-table cycle at every level (students, teachers, parents, district staff, local