I Am Because We Are

Photo by Myrina Renaissance

Every morning, led by school director Isaiah Melendez, the students of Restoration & Wellness practice a ritual of collective belonging that includes this spoken affirmation.

“I am because we are.”

Mr. Melendez teaches them that I am because we are comes from the concept of ubuntu — which affirms that our sense of self is shaped by our relationships with other people.

On November 2, those of us who had the good fortune to be present at the groundbreaking felt the rippling effects of that affirmation. What’s happening on the ground at Restoration is happening because of many people sharing a vision and working together to make it real.

Photo by Myrina Renaissance

In her remarks at the ribbon cutting, lead gardener and school liaison Valaree Logan, shown above presenting our “Welcome, Pollinators" cake, spoke of the concept of Ujima, the third principle of Kwanzaa, which means collective work and responsibility. "What we do is not because of what I’ll do,” Val said, with students gathered around her, “but because of what we will do together.”

Mr. Melendez spoke directly to students: “We are trying to imagine an entirely different program. And you guys helped to start this, you are founders today.”

Loppers in hand, Jai’anna Miller formally launched the Permaculture Project of Metropolitan St. Louis.

Photo by Myrina Renaissance

After the ribbon cutting, the amazing crew of Matt LeBon, Gabriel Hahn, and Emanuel Taranu from Custom Foodscaping got the work underway. Within seconds, we heard the engines of the mini skid and sod cutter. Machines were in motion. Right from the start, students were eager to be hands-on involved in the project, taking up shovels and garden gloves to peel off the cut sod, transfer it to the wheelbarrows, and move it a different site. Eventually, all the grass of both garden plots was stripped away, to be transformed into a berm for the fruit trees and flowers to come. Before and during this week, Val and the students had been reading background materials we’ve prepared on our whole group effort to turn school lawns into healthy, sustainable, gardens. You can read this background here:

The following day, with student input on shape, the swoopy curves of the raised beds were laid out. On Friday, thanks to an even bigger crew from Custom Foodscaping — nutrient-rich soil was wheelbarrowed into the beds and smoothed. Thank you to everyone for all your hard work that day! After that, the paths between the beds were filled in with woodchips. Finally, the water tanks were put into place.

Project Lab St. Louis expresses heartfelt thanks to Dr. Joseph S. Davis, Superintendent of the Ferguson-Florissant School District, for making room for this project in the district. Special gratitude for the incredible flexibility and support of the teachers and administrators who support the students of Restoration & Wellness, including school director Isaiah Melendez, Science Coordinator Eric Hadley, and Director of Facilities & Maintenance Terry O’Neil. We also want to thank Volunteer Lawyers and Accountants for the Arts for their support. As always, we thank our partners at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History and all of the supporters of Project Lab St. Louis, who help ensure that we have the resources we need to keep going.

Photo by Gabriel Hahn

Please stay tuned later this week for student feedback on the installation!