Morganway Community Garden and Park Workday 2009

The Greater Auburn-Gresham Development Corporation (GADC), Urban Gateways, and

Two of Auburn Gresham's finest residents help to plant flowers and vegetable seeds (donated by Chicago Greencorps) at the Morganway Community Garden and Park.

Gwen Newton

Perspectives Charter Schools-Calumet Campus (PCS), along with Alderman Latasha Thomas 17th Ward Office, State Senator Jacqueline Collins (D-16), St. Leo Veterans Campus, GRANDFamilies, NeighborSpace, Greencorps Chicago, and Chicago Mosaic School worked together to reshape/transform an open space located at 7844 South Morgan. Known as the Morganway Community Garden and Park, this strategic initiative aligned itself with Auburn Gresham’s our Quality of Life statement to "make enjoyment of the arts, culture and open space." 

In 2008, under the leadership of Urban Gateways Art Options program, a culmination project of the Morganway Community Garden and Park included the creation and assembly of a 24 foot 3-panel mural (designed by PCS students) and digital media recording. Titled, “There is no Unity without Community,” this mural captivates several aspects of people, places, and things in Auburn Gresham.  

A GADC volunteer teaches her son how to proprely plant vegetable seeds into a garden bed.

Gwen Newton

In 2009, Greencorps Chicago heightened the interest of GADC and several community residents by providing a 4-week intensive training at their renowned Chicago Center for Green Technology.

The primary focus of these workshops was to provide assistance to those currently maintaining a community garden or those wanting to learn more. Keep topics included: steps to starting a community garden, landscape maintenance, lead-free gardening in the City of Chicago, maintaining plant materials in a horticulturally correct manner, and composting and urban agriculture (eating what you grow).

Greencorps Chicago also joined GADC in a community day with nearly 40 residents and volunteers who participated in the garden's development and maintenance. There was landscaping, installation of 2 new vegetable garden beds, and conceptualization of the garden pathway to be layered with mosaic brick pavers (designed by PCS students in the Elev8 Arts Summer Programming.) 

A Chicago Mosaic School artist works with a Perspectives Charter School student to assemble mosaic tile onto a 12x12 brick paver.

Ernest Sanders

The management and construction of these mosaic brick pavers is being coordinated through the Chicago Mosaic School. Students created and designed brick pavers to spell I-N-S-P-I-R-A-T-I-O-N. Eventually these pavers will be positioned in the garden and park to create a pathway of hope-leading to the vegetable garden beds. 

For more information regarding the Morganway Community Garden and Park, please contact Ernest Sanders at the GADC offices at (773) 483-3696.