The West End Women’s Collaborative (WEWC) unites the community—particularly the Chickasaw neighborhood—through healing art, empowering workshops, and meaningful connections. A central focus of WEWC’s work is honoring and celebrating African American culture, which is integrated into all programming, events, and community initiatives. The organization operates with the belief that collective action can lead to transformative outcomes.

In collaboration with WEWC, I have been developing a container herb gardening program using 5-gallon buckets. This initiative is designed to improve food access by teaching residents how to grow and process herbs to supplement grocery expenses. This is particularly important in the West End of Louisville, an area historically considered both a food and healthcare desert. While healthcare access has seen improvements with the opening of a new hospital, food security remains a critical challenge.

As part of our partnership, I have also provided educational materials to increase awareness of sustainable gardening practices. For example, fact sheets I created on topics such as “No Mow Lawns” and “Pollinators” were included as dedicated inserts in WEWC’s monthly newsletter for April and June, reaching over 350 households in the Chickasaw neighborhood.

The container herb gardening program aims to pilot with approximately 5 participants in 2025. Following an evaluation of participant outcomes—including adoption rates, yield success, and self-reported grocery cost offsets—the goal is to scale the program to serve a larger number of households in 2026.