$1,000 Green Grant Awarded to Our Health

Our Health in Winchester is awarded a $500 Green Grant in the Community Beautification category as part of Keep Virginia Beautiful’s 15th Annual Green Grants program.    

Every year, government, non-profit, civic, and service organizations in Virginia are invited to apply for grants ranging from $500 to $1,000 that will help address environmental concerns in their community.  Grants must focus on one of the following priorities:   Litter Prevention, Recycling & Waste Reduction, Cigarette Litter Prevention & Recycling, or Community Beautification. 

Our Health is a nonprofit organization that improves access to quality healthcare and human services for individuals and families in need, partnering with 97 nonprofit organizations throughout the Northern Shenandoah Valley.  

Our Health has a Community Garden that is used as an educational tool, inviting people to help with the planting and maintenance of the garden during the warm weather months. The Community Garden has become a staple in this region during the growing season for people to come and gather fresh produce to eat and cook meals. Funds provided by the Green Grant will be used to purchase a Maze Compost Tumbler and Cart Combo so that they can remove dead plants and other yard and food waste to be processed in the composter; then use the composted material to fertilize their garden. This grant will help Our Health provide healthy food choices for those experiencing food insecurity.  

Executive Director, Sharen Gromling, said that this this project will do two things for the organization, the clients we serve, and the community at large: addressing food insecurity, and the difference that the compost tumbler and cart will make in the community garden, making the campus more beautiful and inviting. The garden is very visible to those that drive by the campus. The more that clients feel safe and secure, the more work that can be done to improve their health and their lives.