Maine School Garden Network

### Context Profile for Maine School Garden Network

1. **Organization Mission & Cause**:
   - The Maine School Garden Network (MSGN) is dedicated to supporting and promoting school gardens across Maine. Their mission is to connect children with nature and the food system through hands-on gardening experiences. They aim to foster environmental stewardship, healthy eating habits, and community engagement among students and educators.

2. **Type of Activities**:
   - MSGN organizes various activities, including:
     - **Workshops**: Educational sessions for teachers and students on gardening techniques, ecological practices, and integrating gardening into the curriculum.
     - **Annual Meetings**: Events that bring together the school garden community for networking, sharing experiences, and celebrating achievements.
     - **Community Programs**: Initiatives that encourage schools to develop and maintain gardens, providing resources and support.
     - **Fundraising Campaigns**: Events like potluck dinners and door prize giveaways to support their programs and initiatives.

3. **Tone of Voice**:
   - The tone of MSGN’s communications is friendly, inspiring, and engaging. They use inclusive language that encourages participation and community building. The content is accessible and designed to motivate educators and community members to get involved in gardening initiatives.

4. **Emoji Usage**:
   - MSGN uses emojis sparingly but effectively in their communications. For example, they include a location pin emoji (📍) in their email reminders to highlight event locations. This adds a friendly touch without overwhelming the message.

5. **Key Facts**:
   - **Founding Info**: MSGN was established to enhance educational opportunities through gardening in schools.
   - **Scale**: The organization has a growing network of school gardens across Maine, impacting numerous students and educators.
   - **Impact Metrics**: While specific metrics are not detailed on the website, the emphasis on community engagement and educational workshops suggests a significant positive impact on local schools.
   - **Volunteer Info**: Volunteers are likely involved in supporting garden initiatives, although specific details on volunteer opportunities are not provided on the website.

6. **Writing Guidelines**:
   - **Style**: Use a conversational and encouraging tone. Aim to inspire action and participation.
   - **Structure**: Keep content clear and organized, using headings and bullet points for easy reading.
   - **Language**: Use simple, relatable language that resonates with educators and community members. Avoid jargon unless it is commonly understood in the gardening community.
   - **Call to Action**: Include clear calls to action in communications, inviting readers to participate in events, workshops, or volunteer opportunities.

This context profile serves as a guide for creating personalized and effective content for the Maine School Garden Network, ensuring alignment with their mission, values, and communication style.

General Admission

LXCL:Make a donation to support Maine School Garden Network's work!

Supporter Ticket

Maine School Garden Network&rsquo;s 2025 Annual Meeting Be our guest for an afternoon and evening as we wrap up 2025! Take part in engaging workshops (2.5 contact hours), connect with the school garden community over a shared potluck meal, and hear highlights from the year in our annual report. We&rsquo;ll also have fun door prizes to round out the event! This year&rsquo;s theme, &ldquo;Small Seeds, Big Impact,&rdquo; celebrates how every school garden, and each moment spent with students outdoors, contributes to a statewide effort to engage the next generation with nature and the food system. Workshops will reflect this theme, exploring the powerful results of small actions&mdash;from sowing seeds in native meadows to growing microgreens that pack a nutritional punch. Together, we&rsquo;ll explore how individual efforts can create lasting change. Agenda:<ul fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">2:00pm: Guest Arrival, light snacks</li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">2:30pm:&nbsp;Seed Sowing with Andrew Tufts, Maine Audubon<ul fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">Outdoor workshop in a meadow, dress accordingly</li></ul></li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">3:45pm: &quot;Microgreens: The Easiest Way to bring Ag into the Classroom&quot; with Randy Cummings, Bootstrap Farm</li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">5:00pm:&nbsp;Potluck dinner&nbsp;<ul fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">Guests are invited to bring a dish</li></ul></li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">5:40pm: Annual Report</li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">6:15pm:&nbsp;Door prizes and goodbyes</li></ul> Workshop Descriptions:&nbsp; <div fr-original-style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;" id="isPasted" style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial; line-height: 1.5; box-sizing: inherit;">1.&nbsp;Sowing Seeds of Stewardship: Teaching Maine&rsquo;s Native Meadows</div><div fr-original-style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;" style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial; line-height: 1.5; box-sizing: inherit;">Description: Discover the beauty and ecological value of Maine&rsquo;s native meadows in this hands-on seed sowing workshop designed for educators. Participants will learn how to establish and care for native plant meadows, explore the vital role these habitats play for pollinators and wildlife, and practice simple, classroom-ready methods for sowing native seeds. Together, we&rsquo;ll connect curriculum to the natural world, giving teachers the tools and confidence to bring these lessons back to their students.&nbsp; Presenter:Andrew Tufts is the Program Manager of Maine Audubon&rsquo;s Bringing Nature Home initiative, where he leads efforts in native plant education, ecological gardening, and habitat restoration. With a background in landscape architecture and a lifelong passion for birds and plants, Andrew works to connect people with Maine&rsquo;s native biodiversity through hands-on teaching, public programs, and community projects.</div> &nbsp;2. &quot;Microgreens: The Easiest Way to bring Ag into the Classroom&quot;Description:&nbsp;A guide to what is a microgreen, what lessons can students learn, and what&#39;s needed to roll it out in the classroom. Presenter:Randy Cummings, Sales Director of Bootstrap Farmer.Presenters Bio:Randy Cummings is the Director of Sales at Bootstrap Farmer with 15 years of experience in the Seeds, Tools and Ag supplies industry. He specializes in Protected Culture and hydroponic growing methods, and has worked with farmers across all climates throughout North America. Based in Waterville, Maine, he&rsquo;s passionate about exchanging ideas that help communities grow&mdash;both crops and connections. Door prizes generously donated by:<ul fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">MSGN will give away two door prize packages of 10 calendars each to help a school garden jump start a fundraiser as well as a sample calendar to everyone who attends the Annual Meeting!</li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">Johnny&#39;s Seeds</li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">Allen Sterling Lothrop</li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">The Outdoor Learning School &amp; Store - A Charitable Non-profit&nbsp;</li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">Coast of Maine Organic Products (all guests will leave with a bag of compost or soil!)</li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">Kathy Gunst Cookbooks</li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">Plants Unlimited in Rockport</li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">The Bankery &amp; Skowhegan Fleuriste</li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">Skillins Greenhouses</li></ul> Thank you to our event sponsors! Real Maine Foreside Garden Club

Hi <span contenteditable="false" data-custom-variable="{{firstname}}" fr-original-class="fr-deletable styled-tag-chip" fr-original-style="" style="background-color: rgb(248, 248, 255); border: 1px solid rgb(191, 191, 255); border-radius: 4px; color: rgb(42, 42, 196); padding: 1px 8px; font-size: 11px; display: inline-block; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; user-select: none; box-sizing: inherit;">First name, Thank you for registering for MSGN&rsquo;s 2025 Annual Meeting! We look forward to seeing you on Friday, November 7th at 2:00 PM. If you are unable to attend the workshops please arrive around 4:45pm for dinner and our annual report. Dinner will be a potluck, so we invite you to bring a dish to share, along with a serving utensil and a label noting any allergens. Address: Gilsland Farm Audubon Center: 20 Gilsland Farm Rd, Falmouth, ME&nbsp;Come in through the building with the gift shop and we will be located in the L.L. Bean Room. Reach out with any questions! Rachel Solomoninfo@msgn.org

Maine School Garden Network’s 2025 Annual Meeting Be our guest for an afternoon and evening as we wrap up 2025! Take part in engaging workshops (2.5 contact hours), connect with the school garden community over a shared potluck meal, and hear highlights from the year in our annual report. We’ll also have fun door prizes to round out the event! This year’s theme, “Small Seeds, Big Impact,” celebrates how every school garden, and each moment spent with students outdoors, contributes to a statewide effort to engage the next generation with nature and the food system. Workshops will reflect this theme, exploring the powerful results of small actions—from sowing seeds in native meadows to growing microgreens that pack a nutritional punch. Together, we’ll explore how individual efforts can create lasting change. Agenda:<ul><li>2:00pm: Guest Arrival, light snacks</li><li>2:30pm: Seed Sowing with Andrew Tufts, Maine Audubon<ul><li>Outdoor workshop in a meadow, dress accordingly</li></ul></li><li>3:45pm: "Microgreens: The Easiest Way to bring Ag into the Classroom" with Randy Cummings, Bootstrap Farm</li><li>5:00pm: Potluck dinner <ul><li>Guests are invited to bring a dish</li></ul></li><li>5:40pm: Annual Report</li><li>6:15pm: Door prizes and goodbyes</li></ul> Workshop Descriptions:  <div>1. Sowing Seeds of Stewardship: Teaching Maine’s Native Meadows</div><div>Description: Discover the beauty and ecological value of Maine’s native meadows in this hands-on seed sowing workshop designed for educators. Participants will learn how to establish and care for native plant meadows, explore the vital role these habitats play for pollinators and wildlife, and practice simple, classroom-ready methods for sowing native seeds. Together, we’ll connect curriculum to the natural world, giving teachers the tools and confidence to bring these lessons back to their students.  Presenter:Andrew Tufts is the Program Manager of Maine Audubon’s Bringing Nature Home initiative, where he leads efforts in native plant education, ecological gardening, and habitat restoration. With a background in landscape architecture and a lifelong passion for birds and plants, Andrew works to connect people with Maine’s native biodiversity through hands-on teaching, public programs, and community projects.</div>  2. "Microgreens: The Easiest Way to bring Ag into the Classroom"Description: A guide to what is a microgreen, what lessons can students learn, and what's needed to roll it out in the classroom. Presenter:Randy Cummings, Sales Director of Bootstrap Farmer.Presenters Bio:Randy Cummings is the Director of Sales at Bootstrap Farmer with 15 years of experience in the Seeds, Tools and Ag supplies industry. He specializes in Protected Culture and hydroponic growing methods, and has worked with farmers across all climates throughout North America. Based in Waterville, Maine, he’s passionate about exchanging ideas that help communities grow—both crops and connections. Door prizes generously donated by:<ul><li>MSGN will give away two door prize packages of 10 calendars each to help a school garden jump start a fundraiser as well as a sample calendar to everyone who attends the Annual Meeting!</li><li>Johnny's Seeds</li><li>Allen Sterling Lothrop</li><li>The Outdoor Learning School &amp; Store - A Charitable Non-profit </li><li>Coast of Maine Organic Products (all guests will leave with a bag of compost or soil!)</li><li>Kathy Gunst Cookbooks</li><li>Plants Unlimited in Rockport</li><li>The Bankery &amp; Skowhegan Fleuriste</li><li>Skillins Greenhouses</li></ul> Thank you to our event sponsors! Real Maine Foreside Garden Club

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Maine School Garden Network

MSGN Annual Meeting 2025

20 Gilsland Farm Rd

General Admission

Free

Supporter Ticket

$10