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The journalist finished the interview and the Warden was happy. The article would appear in our metropolitan paper later in the week. I made arrangements to visit her farm. Once that was done, I would let the warden know what I thought we could do to get the manure for our garden. We said ourContinue reading “The Adventure”

.She was a free-lance journalist for one of our leading metro newspapers, and she wanted to speak with me about the Horticulture program. I was called to the Warden’s conference room in the Administration Building, and that was not viewed by any of my colleagues as a good thing. A page overhead for an employeeContinue reading “The Barn”

Earlier in my teaching career I had a run in with a deputy and her assistant. She and her assistant had tried to stop the warden from approving my plans for landscaping the prison grounds to no avail. What I didn’t realize then was that they viewed me as a threat. This was told toContinue reading “She Did Not Want Flowers”

.After all the craziness with the contraband and the need to change my curriculum away from the distribution of house plants, I took new inspiration from a woman I met at a correctional teacher’s conference in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Her name was Elanor Jositis and I could identify with her struggle to bring opportunity toContinue reading “A New Perspective”

.So after three long months of investigations and my program being put on hold I was informed by our school officer that a cell phone, 32mm magazine clip (missing 2 bullets with 5 bullets remaining in the clip) and a buck knife were discovered inside a plant container. An ounce of Marihuana was also discoveredContinue reading “And then there were three…”

The officers came out of the supply room with the evidence of their dalliance being a little disheveled. They tucked in their shirts and straightened out their uniform pants as they exited opposite ends of the school building. This had been reported to me by a colleague who had witnessed them leaving the supply roomContinue reading “The House Plant Business”

After my two new tutors tested positive for opiates, the school principal had asked our warden to conduct a search in the greenhouse and my classroom. My students would not be allowed back into the classroom or greenhouse until the search was completed. The school principal wanted to make sure nothing was being hidden inContinue reading “Is this real?”

.After returning back to our facility and feeling good about our contribution to Habitat For Humanity’s “Blitz Build” I was alerted by one of my tutors that all of the school’s tutors had been drug tested while I was away. Two of the newly hired Horticulture tutors tested positive for opiates. They were caught tryingContinue reading “The Prison Reality”

.We determined what our signature flower would be which identified us as a producer for the Habitat For Humanity Nursery. That nursery was established at my mentors’ facility. Our contribution, a perennial Hybrid Hibiscus. This plant would grow every year in our Northern climate. and would not have to be replanted. We had been growingContinue reading “A signature flower”

.The flowers for the yard had been grown in the greenhouse by my students and tutors. The production in the first year was incredible. Over 40,000 annuals, 20, 000 perennials and 10, 000 vegetable plants had been propagated and planted through out our facility. Donations were made of perennials and vegetable plants to our extensionContinue reading “The First Harvest”