How one New Jersey teen is transforming backyard harvests into hope
🍅A 16-year-old Westfield student turned extra backyard vegetables into a nonprofit that has already donated 600 pounds of fresh produce to help fight food insecurity.
🍅 Caroline Sahm is asking New Jersey gardeners to donate surplus fruits and vegetables instead of letting them go to waste, with drop-offs accepted in Westfield.
❤️ The teen hopes her "Westfield Seeds of Change" model inspires neighborhoods across New Jersey to help local food pantries with fresh, healthy produce.
WESTFIELD — To help fight food insecurity, a 16 year old New Jersey high school student has started a non-profit after realizing how much fresh produce from backyard gardens go unused each summer, while many local families struggle to access fresh fruits and vegetables.
Caroline Sahm, a rising Westfield High School junior has always enjoyed gardening with her family.
ALSO READ: CVS just made life easier for NJ pet owners with this major change
Growing up, she always valued picking something from her backyard garden and seeing it on her family’s dinner table that night. So, having fresh produce is something she always valued a lot.
“When I was 13, I learned that one of the local pantries near us was having difficulty sourcing fresh produce consistently,” Sahm said.
Westfield teen launches nonprofit to fight food insecurity
Her family garden was always bursting with excess fruits and vegetables that went unused, despite giving some to neighbors and friends.
So, Sahm began Westfield Seeds of Change, with the idea of taking surplus produce, and inviting other other neighbors to do the same with their gardens, and donating the food to St. James Food Pantry in Woodbridge.
For the past three years, Sahm has been busy every day taking donated freshly grown garden fruits and veggies to the pantry.
She is asking residents to drop off excess produce to her home at 610 Coolidge Street, Westfield. All produce dropped off will be taken the same day to the pantry.
To date, Sahm has collected 600 pounds of fresh produce to St. James, and she wants to do more.
All fruits and veggies are welcomed, but she says she mostly receives tomatoes, zucchini, lettuce, radishes, cucumbers and, and even okra.
How New Jersey gardeners can donate extra backyard produce
This summer, Sahm is hoping to inspire even more New Jersey residents to look at their gardens as an opportunity to help a neighbor. She’s posted flyers, and even contacted local nurseries and farms to get the word out about Westfield Seeds of Change.
“This is not just an issue that’s affecting the St. James Food Pantry. There are other pantries nearby and around the country that are suffering with the same difficulties and hardship with sourcing fresh produce. So, we would love to inspire others to support Westfield Seeds of Change or start similar programs in their communities,” Sahm said.
She hopes to inspire people to be more in tuned with food insecurity in their area and try to make a difference in their communities.
Fresh produce donations make an immediate impact at local food pantry
Since starting Westfield Seeds of Change three years ago, Sahm said the reaction from St. James Food Pantry has been so positive and uplifting. The pantry is always happy to see her restocking the refrigerator there.
“One of the most profound moments of this whole organization was my first time going in and seeing that all of the produce that we dropped off the day before had been taken and used,” Sahm said.
In May, Sahm hosed community seedling giveaways to encourage more people to grow their own food.
She gathered 30 seedlings and invited neighbors who were either new to gardening or were looking for extra seedlings to add to their collection, to come to her house, pick up seedlings, help foster their own backyard gardens, and encourage them to donate.
“We find out a lot of times people want to help but they don’t know where to start. So, we thought that this would be a good way to try and get more community members engaged and active,” Sahm said.
The future for Westfield Seeds of Change
She said she would love to continue to grow this program in the years ahead. But, Sahm said she would also love to expand their impact to other local pantries.
“This is not just an issue that affects the St. James Food Pantry. Many other pantries in the area could benefit from excess produce,” Sahm said.
Feel free to drop off your extra garden produce to 610 Coolidge Street, Westfield, and help this teen help others eat healthy, nutritious foods.
“Fighting food insecurity doesn’t always require a large organization. Sometimes it starts in someone’s own backyard,” Sahm said.
Report a correction | Contact our newsroom
The most popular food places in Westfield
Gallery Credit: Erin Vogt
More From New Jersey 101.5 FM
