Craig Smith is KGUN 9's Southeast side reporter. Send your story ideas to Craig at craig.smith@kgun9.com.
A garden run by the University of Arizona’s Extension Service helps people who use SNAP grow food to help stretch their SNAP benefits but Federal money to run the program has been cut.With so much discussion of SNAP benefits, sometimes people will say, “Why can’t SNAP users be more self sufficient?” A garden in South Tucson is dedicated to the idea that people can grow their own food but the garden has some Federal budget troubles of its own.
The Garden Kitchen on South 4th Avenue is dedicated to the idea that even if you only have space for a few flower pots you can grow something to stretch your budget and add extra life to a healthy menu.Glenda Garcia with the Garden Kitchen says, “Certain herbs are a little cost prohibitive for people. For example, if you take a look at what and in a little while, we have lots of basil still growing, and we're going to have a little bit more coming in. That's our herb bed right there that we already walked by.”The garden is a University of Arizona project. It depends on a type of SNAP called SNAP-Ed for education designed to help low income families make the most of their SNAP benefits.But Glenda Garcia says SNAP-Ed has lost all its Federal funding—not from the shutdown but from the budget bill that took effect last month.“We're unable to work with our communities like we had been. And so we're here to see how it all goes and unfortunately, we obviously, we miss working with our communities, but we also wonder, you know, when we're going to be able to pick the if at all.”The effect of the Garden branches out into the Amphi neighborhood.Sharon O’Brien is with Literacy Connects and the We Are Amphi Coalition. With hunger high and SNAP benefits disrupted she says the coalition helps people connect with food resources like the Garden Kitchen.“We have to recognize that people start at many different places and yet, what people are able to do, just like Glenda was talking about, if you have a box of rice, that's a start. But then if you have kale or spinach that you can add to that rice and some eggs if you have chickens now, you are able to really stretch that.”SNAP-Ed will not come back when the shutdown ends so the Garden Kitchen is looking for other funds to keep planting seeds that help food security grow.__________________________________________________________________________Want to discuss this story and keep up with what’s happening in South Tucson and the Southside? Click here to check out and join our new Facebook group to share stories, ask questions, and connect with neighbors.Also, click here to check out our South Tucson and Southside news playlist at YouTube.
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