There was a buzz growing about a local organization that was doing good works in the Nashville area. We reached out in an effort to shed light on the Trap Garden. Rob Horton, founder of Trap Garden, shared some words.
"I appreciate your interest in the Trap Garden. My own personal life experiences have motivated me to want to build something that could provide assistance to others who do not have direct access to fresh fruits, vegetables, and healthy snacks. Growing up in St. Louis, Missouri, in a neighborhood without many fresh healthy food items then moving to Nashville and having to drive miles away from my home to a grocery store with fresh products was frustrating."
"I woke up one morning and decided that I did not want to complain anymore but do something to alleviate the problem. I decided to join a community garden and become an urban gardener to grow my own vegetables and herbs. My undergraduate university, Tennessee State, offers a community garden and my passion for gardening all started there. My enjoyment for the garden grew into the idea of a healthy corner store to help provide fresh locally grown items to other community members. The next step for the Trap Garden is to get others involved in planting. I would really like to be able to purchase my own land in a urban community and allow for others to grow fresh vegetables and herbs. I believe that it is very important to get the community invested in growing and consuming fresh fruits and vegetables. A community garden, educational health sessions, and cooking courses will assist in getting the community more acclimated to healthier food choices available to them."
"Furthermore, I would like to open a corner store and have an established garden for the community to plant fresh items and purchase healthier, fresh food. The ultimate goal of the corner store is to give people in low-income housing areas healthy food options as opposed to fast-food restaurants or other unhealthy items immediately available in their community. As well as to promote, educate, and provide affordable healthy food options that will improve the overall health of people."
"I named my plot Trap Garden because of the history of the word "Trap" in general honestly. The cultural effects of Trap Houses in communities leaking over into trap music which has so much energy in the streets. The word "Trap" originally had a negative connotation but I want to give it a more positive meaning. I wanted something that I could truly be involved in and be myself….be free. The Trap Garden to me means putting in hard work and labor to produce the best possible product (fruit, vegetables, and herbs) to put out in the community."
About the Trap Garden
Trap Garden was founded in Nashville, Tennessee by Robert “Rob Veggies” Horton. Rob’s motivation as an urban farmer stems from his own experiences growing up in a St. Louis, Missouri neighborhood with few fresh, healthy food items. Frustrated with driving miles from his home to find a grocery store with fresh produce, he decided to stop complaining and alleviate the problem by joining a community garden. He started the Trap Garden in February 2015, growing his own vegetables and herbs, and providing assistance to others who do not have direct access to fresh fruits, vegetables, and healthy snacks.
Mission
The Trap Garden is a social enterprise that provides a sustainable source of healthy, high quality foods and offers innovative solutions to the physical, financial, and educational shortcomings in food insecure communities. Our mission is to help build, sustain, and empower low-income communities by assisting in the creation of community gardens and the promotion of healthy eating. The Trap Garden seeks to motivate and inspire others to start something that matters in their communities- to not depend on a major grocery store or business to provide them with their daily needs. The Trap Garden improves geographic, economic, and informational access to vegetables within food deserts. We creategardens in unlikely places that foster opportunities for community engagement, education, and support, as well aseconomic empowerment, by returning the community and its resources to the people.
Goals
The primary goals of the Trap Garden are as follows:
1. Increase the availability and access to healthy foods in food deserts across the United States.
- Increase the availability of fresh produce in communities deemed as food deserts.
- Reduce the travel time to the nearest grocery store with fresh produce available.
2. Create safe spaces for community interaction and fun across all ages, cultures, and incomes
- Assist in establishing and sustaining community gardens.
- Engage community members with workshops to assist in growing fresh produce.
3. Decrease the costs of healthier foods for food desert communities to fair market prices.
- Reduce comparative costs (including money spent on transport or childcare as needed) for groceries.
4. Engage and educate the public on Nutrition, Environment, Diversity, and Civic Responsibility in cooperation with local schools, libraries, and other organizations.
- Provide healthy, practical culinary courses to community members.
- Provide volunteer leadership opportunities through board positions and volunteer opportunities.
“You should never starve to death because someone doesn't bring food to you. Grow your own!”