2024 Governor’s Volunteerism & Community Service Award honoree the Youth Education Program (YEP) is a Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia team of certified Extension Master Gardeners that provides hands-on youth gardening education at local schools and youth organizations. With a focus on sustainable practices, YEP’s 10-15 members collectively worked approximately 1,400 hours in the past year and served nearly 20 different youth organizations, including elementary schools in Alexandria and Arlington, the local Boys and Girls Club of Greater Washington, and the Northern Virginia Juvenile Detention Center.  

YEP members empower kids, caregivers, and teachers to practice sustainable gardening through fun activities related to researching, planning, and growing their own gardens. Working in small groups, YEP members engage students in key garden tasks, encouraging them to record observations, data, and drawings in their personal garden journal. YEP kids meet new friends, learn new skills, and engage collaboratively in groups, helping each other pull weeds, test soil, dig holes, and plant seeds.  

YEP kids benefit from growing food and native plants, belonging to a garden community, experiencing the mental health boosts of gardening, and learning about healthy eating. Further, as an intergenerational program, YEP benefits its volunteers as much as the youth communities they serve, providing new-found purpose post-retirement

YEP members also advocate for school garden space and outdoor water access by serving on local sustainability boards. Communities are created through YEP’s work. Caring for and nurturing a garden enhances feelings of empowerment and community by creating something good that all can enjoy.