SPRINGFIELD, Ark. (KATV) — A new community project in Conway County aims to improve access to fresh food while creating a space for neighbors to connect and learn.
The Rural America Economic Development Foundation (RAEDF) is developing a community campus on Highway 124 in Springfield that will include a community garden, gathering spaces and a digital literacy hub.
The project is funded through a $15,000 AARP Community Challenge grant and is designed to serve as a model for other rural communities across Arkansas.
Organizers said the campus will provide residents with access to fresh produce while creating opportunities for neighbors to reconnect and support one another.
“This is the first step in an effort to revitalize this community,” said Woodson Walker, CEO and secretary of RAEDF.
In addition to the community garden, plans call for a digital literacy hub inside a nearby church, where residents can build computer skills, access online resources and stay connected with family.
“What better way to reconnect than to come back and do a garden where people can not only get food, but an opportunity to socialize?” Walker said.
Organizers said community members will be able to volunteer, donate or share their gardening knowledge to help the project grow.
Hope Walker, president of RAEDF, said she hopes the campus becomes a gathering place for people throughout the area.
“Lots of beautiful vegetables, and our community picking the vegetables and taking them home,” Hope Walker said. “Community means all of the villages around here coming and participating and visiting with each other, and getting active with the computers, visiting their relatives, visiting each other. That’s what we hope for it to look like in one year.”
Organizers said they also hope the campus will provide health education and new opportunities for residents for years to come.
The community campus is expected to open later this summer, with the garden and digital literacy hub designed to serve residents of all ages.
