Food for all: Carlow University garden in Oakland is the vision of a student from Bethel Park
Grace’s Garden will provide nourishment for the body … and the soul.
Located on land at Carlow University in Oakland, the ground is being tended to grow fruits and vegetables for not only students, faculty and staff, but also anyone else in the community.
The name of the Carlow Community Garden honors the late Jacqueline Fettis, whom everyone called Grace.
“My grandmother was a fantastic influence on my gardening aspirations,” said Isabelle Finnegan, 20, of Bethel Park, a third-year student at Carlow studying health sciences who aspires to be a physician assistant.
“She was an amazing woman. Despite facing many hardships, she always found the time to give back to her community. My grandmother loved to garden and she passed that love down to my mom who passed it down to me,” Finnegan said.
The community garden idea embraces Carlow’s mission, according to Kathy Wilson Humphrey, the university’s president.
“Everyone has gifts and skills, and it is about giving back with a desire to want to help,” Humphrey said. “This garden in many ways epitomizes my hope for them. I say to them all the time, ‘To whom much is given, much is required.’ It is one of my favorite scriptures, and for them to act on it means so much.”
The plan is for the garden to provide fresh food offerings to be distributed through the Purple Door, a food pantry on campus. Inventory at the Purple Door and what will be harvested from the garden will also be available to members of the community.
The Purple Door began in a cabinet with a few items. It has expanded to a space designed like a grocery store, where people can come in and choose what they want. Its name comes from one of the school’s colors. The Purple Door partners with the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank and the American Heart Association, which will host upcoming heart-health education sessions.
“This is about being a good neighbor,” said Sister Sheila Carney, a mission officer who supervises the staff member responsible for the Purple Door.
A Sister of Mercy for nearly six decades, Carney, who grew up nearby, said helping others is one of the order’s core values — a vow of service.
Carlow is a private Catholic university. Its heritage extends back to 1831 in Dublin, Ireland, where Catherine McAuley founded the Sisters of Mercy.
In 1843, seven of her followers traveled to Pittsburgh and established the community here, and 86 years later they responded to the need for Catholic higher education for women by opening Mount Mercy College, now Carlow University. It became co-ed in 2011.
“This area is a food desert, and at times students have to decide whether to pay rent or buy food,” Carney said.
People may say it is just a garden, but it is a lot more, Humphrey said, as the students are going to get much more than the labor they provide.
“This is something that can be fruitful for a long time and it is being embraced by the entire campus,” Humphrey said. “They want to do this,and they are inviting others to join them. They have a dream, and they are executing that dream. This is the ultimate leadership, where you take a vision and you make it appear.”
Another part of the project is designed to utilize the greenhouse on campus so that food can be grown throughout the year. But that will require a minimum of $50,000 to be viable, Humphrey said. The greenhouse needs repairs to its heating, cooling and ventilation system.
The idea of the garden came after Finnegan collaborated with Carlow student Kayla Daberko from South Park on creating a plant club at the university in spring of 2023. Finnegan approached Humphrey about the idea of the garden, which launched in March.
“Kayla has been a huge help and support in the creation of the garden,” Finnegan said. “We work closely with each other on many plant-related projects.”
One of them was visiting the Gardens of Millvale. Finnegan said she learned about food deserts while touring and that property. She visited the community library,where the produce from the garden is stored for community members to access as they need.
“I learned the importance of volunteer work and visibility in community projects,” Finnegan said. “Visiting the Gardens of Millvale sparked the true interest of providing food in Oakland, the food desert I call home as a student who lives here. The visit to Millvale is one of my most profound memories and life experiences; it truly showed me the value of community programs, involvement and engagement. “
Finnegan said one of the first things she learned at Carlow is the voyage and works of the Sisters of Mercy.
“Their leadership and values are deeply ingrained in every aspect of the university,” Finnegan said. “I was inspired by their fearless devotion to service. In their day and age, women working was practically unheard of, so women in leadership and academic positions were astonishing. Many of the sisters have taught at the university, among being activists and figures of social justice and change.”
The support from the staff and faculty at Carlow has been “astounding,” Finnegan said.
“And perhaps, most importantly, the community members who stop by while I’m in the garden are also much appreciated,” Finnegan said. ” I love interacting with the community, and every person I’ve met thus far has described how beautiful and joyous it has been to watch this project progress from the ground up — literally.”
Most of the materials were covered by a grant Carlow received for the project. For some that weren’t, Finnegan reached out to Andy Amrhein, owner of Evey True Value Hardware in Bethel Park, who supplied some of the items needed.
Finnegan worked at the store and knew he had collaborated with Grow Pittsburgh, the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy and area schools on gardening.
“Isabelle is dynamic,” Amrhein said. “She has a love of being healthy and she wants everyone to have the choice of healthy foods.”
Finnegan learned the importance of healthy eating from watching her grandmother and parents, LeeAnne and Sean Finnegan,who shared a love of gardens and inspired her, as does her boyfriend, Nick Leccia of Bethel Park, who has helped with the garden.
Isabelle said this is important work because if you start eating right when you are young that will carry through your life. And everyone needs access to good food.
“I’m also especially grateful for the support of my family, friends and community throughout this journey,” she said. “My parents have listened to me come up with crazy ideas my entire life, and they have supported me through every one of them. We’ve had gardens for my entire life. Some of my earliest memories are of picking tomatoes and zucchini fresh out of the garden. We will put seeds in the ground and see where it takes us.”
Her grandmother would be proud.
JoAnne Klimovich Harrop is a TribLive reporter covering the region's diverse culinary scene and unique homes. She writes features about interesting people. The Edward R. Murrow award-winning journalist began her career as a sports reporter. She has been with the Trib for 26 years and is the author of "A Daughter's Promise." She can be reached at jharrop@triblive.com.
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