Victory Gardens Sprouting From Hawaii Kai Firm

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Tannya Joaquin knows getting kids to like their vegetables is easy if you start them off young and grow it in your own back yard. Her son Kaimana seems to relish that lettuce leaf. Photo from the Joaquins.

Everything’s coming up roses, or organic vegetables for that matter, as TV news anchor Tannya Joaquin and husband Alan have begun using their green thumbs to better the community.

The Hawaii Kai couple founded Aloha Victory Gardens Program, modeled after a successful 2007 pilot project in San Francisco. The goal, they said, is to donate and plant 12 diverse victory gardens statewide.

And although Tannya admits she has the less-green thumb, she put her husband up to the task of building their own garden. Good choice, because Alan has 20 years’ experience in commercial and government landscape contracting in Hawaii.

“I was a pilot for Aloha Airlines and was touched by the outpouring of community support after Aloha shut down,” Alan said. “I witnessed firsthand the power of the aloha spirit. The selfless acts of compassion following Aloha’s sudden shutdown is what inspired me to give back.

“Tannya and I felt the gift of 12 gardens could make a positive difference to struggling families, schools and organizations. I guess you can say it’s my way of ‘spreading a little Aloha - one garden at a time.’”

Last month they launched a garden at the Institute for Human Services Women & Children’s Shelter, followed by a second garden soon after at Kihei Elementary School on Maui.

“It was very rewarding to do something positive for a school dealing with budget cuts and furloughs,” Alan explained. “We installed the garden along with Kihei teachers, the principal and volunteers from South Maui Sustainability.

“The response has been incredible so far. We hope Kihei’s garden can be a model for other schools statewide.”

Alan also is passionate about creating better ways to keep storm drains and oceans free of pollutants and debris. He created a new line of compost filter socks, which also serve as instant organic gardens or “Wiki Gardens.”

“We feel like we’re on to something with our Wiki Garden,” Tannya added,“and we want to spread the word that growing your own food can be fun, easy and affordable.”

“Simplicity is the key,” Alan added. “So many people give up their garden because of all the work and disappointing results. Areas like East Oahu are famous for their rock-laden backyards, so prepping the soil is a huge job.”

With a Wiki Garden, Alan said, you simply choose a spot that gets at least four hours of sunlight per day, lay the garden ‘logs’ down, connect them end-to-end using the EZ-Connector, plug your garden hose into the first one, plant your seeds or starter plants, and you’re done.

The Joaquins are making plans to install their third Aloha Victory Garden at Dole Middle School, feeding their belief that gardening is a beneficial tool for younger generations that leads to lifelong skills and a healthy lifestyle.

“Micah Wakabayashi (of Dole school) contacted us, saying he teaches students with moderate to severe dis-

abilities, and they’ve have proven that they have brown thumbs with their attempts to grow a school garden.

“It breaks my heart to think how disappointed the kids must be. The Wiki Garden will be an early Christmas gift,” Tannya said, adding “Children exposed to gardening will be more likely to eat fruits and vegetables.”

“Growing food locally empowers self-reliance,“Alan said. “Gardens can bring communities closer together, beautify neighborhoods, educate our children, reduce family food budgets, and improve health and fitness.”

As new parents themselves, in fact, the Joaquins hope that the program will grow with their 1-year-old son Kaimana.

“Seeing Kai grow and develop as a little person continually reminds me of the importance of doing something that will benefit our keiki and future generations,” Alan said.

“He’s been to both Aloha Victory Garden installations. He loves playing in the dirt and touching all the plants,” Tannya added.

“It’s fun, family bonding time.”

As for the future, with nine more gardens are up for grabs, she added they hope to reach out to the Hawaii Kai Retirement & Assisted Living Community.

“We think the seniors would get a lot out of a garden. We have a custom stand to elevate the garden modules that would be perfect for those who are young at heart.”

The hardest part, she said, is choosing among the applicants, who often have moving requests.

A program offshoot is Keiki Learning Gardens.“We want schools to have a way to earn their own garden. We also hope to expand with an ‘Adopt a Garden’ option down the road.”

It’s the gift of sustainability that Alan and Tannya believe to be the most victorious result of all.

“Give a child some food, feed her for a day. Teach a child to grow her food, feed her for life,” Alan said.

For more information, visit http://www.alohavictorygar-dens.org or go the the Web site www.thewikigarden.com.