ALABAMA A&M and AUBURN UNIVERSITIES

As a child-care worker, Satcher not only supervises children at the home but also helps them develop basic skills, especially social skills. After attending a 4-H youth-instruction workshop at Auburn University several years ago, it occurred to her that 4-H projects would be a great way to jump-start these skills among her children.

Satcher contacted her local county Extension office and the rest, as they say, is history.

Calhoun County Extension Agents David West and Ruth Sarro encouraged Satcher to work with Susie Franklin, a former 4-H’er, adult volunteer and avid gardener who already had helped set up a Master-Gardener work program at the facility. Master Gardener, as the name implies, teaches all facets of gardening, from planting to harvesting.

It didn’t take Satcher long to realize her efforts were not in vain. Four-H projects and the Attention Home turned out to be a perfect match.

"Some of my kids come from anti-social backgrounds and don’t know how to help each other," Satcher says. "These projects teach kids social skills," she says. "A lot of things we do here require a group effort, and this teaches them to cope and work together."

Over time, what began as a modest 4-H project involving one volunteer eventually was combined with the Master Gardener program and blossomed into a comprehensive teaching program involving several adults, thanks to efforts by West and Sarro.

Realizing the potential for the Master Gardener work program, West already had received a series of grants that enabled the facility to expand into a 4-acre project equipped with a greenhouse, a storage shed, tree nursery, a part-time educator and several adult volunteers.

Hayes Jackson, an Extension agent assistant who often works 20-plus hours a week with the project, provides youngsters with both hands-on and classroom experience in gardening.

"Basically, I take a day each week with the kids," Jackson says. "I start out with classroom instruction in the morning, covering everything from trees to small fruits, then I follow up with greenhouse work in the afternoons."

"One of the more memorable classes was on pencils," Jackson recalls. "We discussed how long it takes to get trees big enough to make pencils out of them. I ask simple questions, but in the process, they learn a lot."

Some former Attention Home children have been so inspired by their work with plants that they’ve decided to pursue full-time horticulture-related careers.

"I had a phone call from one of the students just yesterday who needed a reference call for a job application," Jackson says. "Not only had he gained experience working in a greenhouse, but he was pursuing a job in the landscape field. I’ve seen this happen several times."

While some kids who take part in the project don’t pursue careers in horticulture, they still perceive their horticultural experiences useful in a variety of ways.

"I have other goals set for my life," says Leisha, an Attention Home resident who plans to pursue a career in cosmetology or nursing. "But I’ve begun to realize that plants are very loving. I didn’t like them at first but now I like growing flowers most of all."

Sherry Blanton, a 4-H adult volunteer for the project, has seen this kind of change in the children time after time.

"We enjoy what we do and I think some of this joy rubs off on the kids," Blanton says, "You watch kids come here – they’ve never gotten in the dirt – and they’re initially scarred to death when they see a spider or an insect. "But over time, you see them grow to love it."

Caroline Wellesley, another volunteer, believes many of the mental seeds that are planted in the kids will benefit them for the rest of their lives.

"I think we’re building a work ethic without realizing it," Wellesley says. "I think some of the benefits may not show up for years, but eventually, some of these children

will start gardens of their own."

One such aspiring gardener is Angel, another Attention Home resident who, like Leisha, plans to pursue other career goals.

"I don’t plan on doing this as a career, but I do want to get married and have a house with pretty flowers," she says.

SOURCE: JIM LANGCUSTER, Extension communications specialist, Alabama Cooperative Extension System, (334) 844-5686.