“Imagine a garden, a mulch walkway down the middle with fruits and vegetables growing on either side. Ripe tomatoes and fresh green beans that will be later canned and cooked.”
The opening line of local Makenzie Swisher’s almost 700-word essay, titled “Gardening to Make a Difference for a Better World,” helped her place second in the National Garden Club High School Essay Contest in June.
Swisher, a 2015 graduate of Jonesville High School, wrote about her three-year gardening experience at JHS’ Future Farmers of America chapter.
“It was really inspiring for me to see the difference I made each week when I donated to the local food banks,” Swisher said. “I wanted everybody else to know the difference even one garden can make.”
Swisher’s FFA chapter planted many kinds of produce, from cucumbers and squash to watermelons and carrots. The chapter cultivated more than 1300 pounds of food during summer 2014.
“We donated pretty much all of it to two local food banks, one in Hillsdale and one in Reading,” Swisher said.
Swisher learned about the competition from JHS teacher Jennifer Welden, who helped edit the essay.
“In my opinion, Makenzie Swisher is a very caring student — in the global sense,” Welden said. “She does not just reach out to students she sees on an individual basis, but she is active in the whole community. She is definitely here to help better her environment.”
Swisher said she edited the paper about six times after brainstorming and writing.
High school students across the nation submitted their essays for judging by November 1, 2014 and Swisher learned she won second place in June.
“I was actually really shocked when I found out, because I hadn’t heard anything about it for a long time,” Swisher said. “When they called me and said ‘congratulations!’ I felt like ‘wow’ and was really surprised.”
President of Hillsdale Garden Club Anna Bertalon presented Swisher with a $100 prize and the second place award from the national club.
“I think this is the first time we’ve participated in the competition as a club. No local student has placed in the competition in recent years,” Bertalon said. “We want to get young people interested in gardening and participating in their neighborhoods.”
Swisher is now a first-year student at Spring Arbor University. She plans to study English and aspires to be a writer.