WP Rawl, the largest grower, processor and shipper of leafy greens in the US continues with its mission to end hunger by hosting the third-annual Katie’s Krops Camp this past week alongside its founder, Katie Stagliano. Katie’s Krops, a non-profit focused on empowering young growers to plant vegetable gardens and donate the harvest to the underserved in their communities, held the three day camp at the WP Rawl headquarters in Pelion, SC.
Fourteen campers were handpicked throughout the country to join Katie this year. Katie's Krops Camp educates young growers about agriculture, the environment and teaches a sustainable solution to the problem of hunger, as well as responsibility and compassion. The three-day camp also included workshops on growing practices, budgeting, and other gardening needs.
WP Rawl covers all expenses for the camp, making it possible for any well-deserving Katie’s Krops grower to attend, if chosen. The company looks forward to hosting and meeting a new crop of growers year after year.
“Katie has such vision,” says Ashley Rawl, vice president of sales, marketing and product development at WP Rawl. “Once we learned about her mission, we knew we wanted to help her cause. It has been truly amazing to watch her grow over the years we have worked with her.”
Katie’s Krops Camp also gives young growers the opportunity to learn from their peers. Growers who attend camp go home empowered and perform better in the year following, as seen from previous years.
“I am so grateful to WP Rawl for making my dreams a reality by hosting and sponsoring the camp and supporting our grant cycle," says Katie Stagliano, chief executive gardener and founder of Katie’s Krops. “Campers have a wonderful opportunity to learn from one another, encourage each other and create lasting friendships."
Each year, the Katie’s Krops Camp works together to give back to the community with a service project. When the camp first began in 2014, campers hosted a dinner in Columbia, where they served warm and healthy meals to the underserved with their own harvest. In 2014, the camp brought the young growers to the local Harvest Hope Food Bank where they built raised vegetable garden beds so the food bank could grow its own harvest and be left with a sustainable solution to vegetable shortages, which are common at food banks across the country. This summer the 15 campers, including Katie, will once again participate in a community service project as they raise garden beds for the Lexington Interfaith Community Services (LICS) in nearby Lexington, a town 30 minutes from WP Rawl’s Pelion headquarters.
Katie’s Krops wouldn’t be possible without the support of donations. To learn more about giving to the cause visit www.katieskrops.com and click donate. For more information on Katie’s Krops and WP Rawl, please visit www.katieskrops.org and www.rawl.net.