We are honored to give the 2022 Food Charter Champion Award for Good Food Policy to Margaruette Seguin.
Margaruette is the Lewiston school district’s first ever Elementary Garden Educator! Raised in Lewiston, Margaruette returned to her hometown after college as a FoodCorps service member, connecting kids to healthy food in elementary schools. She served two years in the position before working collaboratively with the diversified Farm to School Team at Conners composed of teachers, administrators, and community partner organizations, to create the district’s first-ever in-house, paid garden educator position at Connors Elementary!
This year, Margaruette has worked tirelessly to get the garden program at Connors off the ground in its inaugural year – which is able to utilize a beautiful new garden and orchard. Due to Margaruette’s efforts, every one of Connors ~700 students participates in garden class, just as they would in a gym or library. These hands-on, experiential lessons allow kids to make connections between their bodies, the earth, and their communities.
During the winter, Margaruette developed a nutrition related curriculum that introduced kids to the awesome nutritional power of fruits and vegetables, taught them basic cooking skills, and centered body- and food-positivity throughout the curriculum. It is also a long term goal to see a dedicated garden educator at every public school in Lewiston, and across the state; Margaruette participates actively in the statewide Farm to School network that is building toward this goal. Many thanks and congratulations for successfully advocating for Good Food Policies in our schools, Margaruette!
ABOUT: Each year, the Good Food Council of Lewiston-Auburn hosts the Food Charter Champion Awards by celebrating the contributions of five individuals or groups from the greater Lewiston-Auburn area who strive to create a more vibrant and healthy food system from farm-to-fork. Those honored with awards ‘lead by example’ in one, or more, of the five principles of the LA Community Food Charter. Learn more about the other 2022 Food Charter Champion Award winners here.