This blog post is written by Sandy Story, director of the Sowing Seeds education program, a project of the Vail Valley Foundation.
"Recently I had the wonderful opportunity to visit our nation’s capital of Washington D.C. with Chef Kelly Liken of Kelly Liken Restaurant, Rick Colomitz, business partner, General Manager, and Wine Director of Restaurant Kelly Liken, three Eagle County students, and a parent chaperone. After passing through intense security (thrice) we found ourselves waiting outside The First Lady’s Office trying to calm our nerves of excitement while waiting for our host, Sam Kass, personal Chef to President Obama and family, and the newly appointed Director of Healthy Eating Initiative. Sam was the guide on our personal tour of the White House Victory Gardens. A cool April downpour had just finished and the sun was shining as we walked out onto the South lawn of the White House.
What a beautiful site! The garden was neatly manicured and straight accompanied by orderly bed plantings of herbs, lettuces, spinach, leeks, and squashes. Sam went on to explain and direct our attention to the largest raised bed in the garden that is dedicated to the former 3rd President of the United States, Thomas Jefferson. All the vegetables that we saw (Marseilles figs, French artichokes, and purple calabash tomatoes) came from heirloom seeds that had been harvested, collected, and passed down from Mr. Jefferson’s original Monticello garden back in 1809. What a wonderful history lesson to impart to the three Eagle County students that accompanied us on the tour.
First Lady Michelle Obama, while not able to meet us, wanted us to know that she personally helps plant the Victory Garden each year and visits the garden regularly.
Along with all the wonderful early spring plantings, the adjacent garden boasts buzzing hand-crafted bee hives, sturdy wooden (and very full) compost bins, and lush blackberry and raspberry bushes.
Our tour ended with group photos on the lawn of the White House and an invitation posed to Mr. Kass to visit our beautiful state of Colorado to learn more about the Sowing Seeds Project at The Vail Valley Foundation. He said he will look forward to the visit.
Springtime in Paris may be everyone’s wish, but springtime in Washington D.C. is truly a wonderful place to be."
-Sandy Story
What a beautiful site! The garden was neatly manicured and straight accompanied by orderly bed plantings of herbs, lettuces, spinach, leeks, and squashes. Sam went on to explain and direct our attention to the largest raised bed in the garden that is dedicated to the former 3rd President of the United States, Thomas Jefferson. All the vegetables that we saw (Marseilles figs, French artichokes, and purple calabash tomatoes) came from heirloom seeds that had been harvested, collected, and passed down from Mr. Jefferson’s original Monticello garden back in 1809. What a wonderful history lesson to impart to the three Eagle County students that accompanied us on the tour.
First Lady Michelle Obama, while not able to meet us, wanted us to know that she personally helps plant the Victory Garden each year and visits the garden regularly.
Along with all the wonderful early spring plantings, the adjacent garden boasts buzzing hand-crafted bee hives, sturdy wooden (and very full) compost bins, and lush blackberry and raspberry bushes.
Our tour ended with group photos on the lawn of the White House and an invitation posed to Mr. Kass to visit our beautiful state of Colorado to learn more about the Sowing Seeds Project at The Vail Valley Foundation. He said he will look forward to the visit.
Springtime in Paris may be everyone’s wish, but springtime in Washington D.C. is truly a wonderful place to be."
-Sandy Story
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