Lions Club plants Farm-to-School garden

The Whitefish Lions Club launched an organic Farm-to-School garden this summer and come harvest time, they expect to have 15,000 pounds of fresh vegetables to donate to local school cafeterias.

"We wanted a legacy project that we could hang our hats on that would be around for years to benefit the community," explained Greg Shaffer, president of the local Lions Club and the man heading up the farm project. "We came up with the idea to have a garden to grow vegetables that would support the local school district."

Through the garden, the club hopes to offset some unhealthy eating habits that are rampant among America's youth.

"Part of the Lions Club is 'sight and hearing,'" Shaffer said. "Diabetes is a major cause of eye-sight problems and we wanted to do something about it."

Almost 48,000 people in Montana have diabetes, and the rate is steadily increasing.

The Montana Diabetes Project notes that Type 2 diabetes — related to obesity and poor diet — is showing up more regularly in children, and that the disease "presents a major clinical and public health challenge."

The club is addressing some of those challenges with the 50-by-300 foot vegetable garden where they're growing 2,000 potato plants, 5,000 onions, radishes, cucumbers and dozens of squash and zucchini.

"All the community gardens popping up are great," Shaffer said. "But this is different. It will help the kids be aware of good nutrition and where their food comes from."

Jay Stagg, the Whitefish School District's nutrition director, is working directly with Shaffer and the Lions Club to get the thousands of pounds of produce to the school. Stagg says he's excited about the club's project and the possibility of using fresh and locally-grown food.

"I'm really getting into using local produce as much as possible," Stagg said.

He notes that he has to produce a lunch for less than $1 per serving, and the club's garden will go a long way in offsetting his expenses.

"We have an agreement with the school that we just want to cover our costs," Shaffer explained. "They'll buy produce from us far below market costs, which is saving taxpayers money."

Stagg is working on a plan to take most of the potatoes to the Montana Growers Co-op in Arlee, where they'll be traded for a variety of fresh produce. That way, he said, the kids won't have potatoes growing out of their ears.

Shaffer eventually wants to open the farm up to the school's environmental and agricultural classes for hands-on field trips so they know where their lunch is coming from.

"You know those bumper stickers that say 'Who's your farmer?'" he said. "Now the kids at school can say, 'The Whitefish Lions Club is our farmer.'"

The garden relies totally on donations and volunteers to prosper.

Don Kaltschmidt granted permission to plow the farm on vacant land he owns adjacent to his auto dealership, Don K Chevrolet and Subaru. Car Quest, on the opposite side of the farm, allowed the club to tap into their well for an irrigation system that Auto Rain and Western Building Center helped install. Mark Morris and T-Bend Construction plowed the field, and Midway Rental provided some of the heavy equipment.

The list of sponsors goes on and on, but Shaffer says more volunteers will be needed to keep pace with maintenance. Since the farm is in an old hay field, Shaffer said, pulling grass and weeds from the rows of potatoes and onions is a never-ending chore.

The Lions Club meets every Wednesday to weed and mow the grounds around the farm, and anyone looking to help out can contact Shaffer at 261-5512.