Caroline Halliday '21 Pays It Forward

8/12/2020

Caroline Halliday '21 had her Hutchison social science certificate project all planned out. She wanted to start a Community Supported Agriculture vegetable subscription service for Hutchison families, but with a pay-it-forward twist: for every one purchased by a Hutchison family, she would provide one for a family in need in Memphis. Then the pandemic hit, and her plans got turned upside down.

But Caroline didn't let it stop her. She shifted course and developed a partnership with New Hope Christian Academy. Mary Riddle, our director of environmental education and sustainability, gave her a crash course in farm management, and Caroline got to work. She planned, planted, and cultivated the farm all summer long, and each week she shared the bounty of her harvest with families at New Hope.

Caroline said, "I went into this project with a certain idea of how I thought it would go, but everything changed. I ended up getting far more out of it than I expected. I was able to make meaningful connections with my community at Hutchison, as well as the people at New Hope. What I've come to realize is that changing my project and creatively addressing the constraints of the pandemic actually embodies the spirit of the social sciences. It gave me the opportunity to learn about the world, build new relationships, and do a small part to help bolster our local community food system."

David Vaughan, New Hope farm manager, talked about the success of the partnership and Caroline’s eagerness to help: "Caroline is an absolute delight. She has such a good spirit and a willingness to help in any way. I'm really glad we had the chance to partner!"

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