The children at the H’man ‘shawa Early Childhood Development Center are learning valuable life lessons that will benefit them for years to come. Through the school garden, they learn healthy eating habits, engage in community activities, learn to take responsibility and more.

Nearly three years in the making, the garden has become a favorite place on campus for many students, teachers and community members. Teachers take their classes outside to water and harvest crops, then they prepare a healthy snack for the rest of the day.

“We've tweaked it here and there, but the goal has always been from day one, garden to table,” Principal Michael Brown said. “So, what we grow, we want to make sure that we're cooking. All the different classes, they'll have different recipes that they'll do using asparagus or whatever it is that we harvest that day.”

Students at H’man ‘shawa also bring the food they harvested home to cook. Brown said they know their efforts are successful when parents send pictures and videos of the kids cooking and eating fresh vegetables at home.

H’man ‘shawa serves children in Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation (FMYN) ages 0-5. Brown said he sees a big difference in a child’s willingness to eat vegetables when they’re the ones doing the work to plant, harvest and cook, and he hopes the experience sticks with them as they grow up.

Brown has been the principal since the garden was started, and H’man ‘shawa had help from lots of community members and outside organizations to get the garden where it is now. At first, the FMYN tribal farm dug irrigation systems and turned the side of the school from all gravel into a proper area for a garden.

Fort McDowell Sand & Gravel gave donations for the foundation and the school partnered with the Wassaja Memorial Health Center’s Healthy Futures program to provide funding for things like shade over the garden. Eventually word got out to the Fountain Hills Community Garden, and they’ve acted as volunteers, instructors and a source of knowledge for both teachers and students.

“This has been over a year and a half now that they come over at least once a week on Wednesdays and spend two or three hours in the garden,” Brown said. “[They] help plant new things. They help to harvest. They help us with different designs that we need to do. They’ve been amazing, absolutely amazing. We wouldn’t be able to continue to do it without their help.”

Brown credits McKenzie Lewis, a teacher at H’man ‘shawa, for reaching out to the Fountain Hills Community Garden. The volunteers offer their expertise and since the garden’s inception, H’man ‘shawa has grown tomatoes, watermelon, corn, beets, squash, carrots, peppers and more.

Brown and his staff wanted to open their garden to more members in the FMYN community this year, and that started with the senior center right across the street. The kids walk food over, and sometimes the elders come over to read to the kids. Brown said those interactions are important to build a sense of community.

“We do provide some to the senior center,” Brown said. “We provide it to the community, some of the family members who are interested in that. Our goal is to be able to flourish enough to provide it to the community on demand.”

The staff check for animals like gophers and snakes before letting the children go out. Each teacher has a different vision for how they use the garden, but Brown said they learn something new each day thanks to regular upkeep.

“We're always trying to have an open mind in terms of how we present it to the children and always having those teachable moments with them,” Brown said. “This is where food comes from. This is where the healthy food comes from, and this is going to benefit you for years and years and generations and generations.”