Earl’s Garden Mae’s Kitchen, located in Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood, is a flourishing community garden born out of a grassroots effort to transform a neglected plot into a vibrant space for growth and community building. The garden was established by local residents in 2015, inspired by the vision of Earl and Mae Jenkins, longtime gardeners who instilled in their daughter and founder of the garden, Mekazin, an understanding of growing your own food as an essential form of self-reliance. Initially an overgrown plot, the area was purchased for $1 through the city’s vacant lot program, then cleared and cultivated through collective neighborhood efforts.
The garden features striking public art sculptures created by local artists, adding a unique cultural touch to the green space. These sculptures serve as a source of inspiration and pride for the community, celebrating Englewood’s rich artistic heritage. Earl’s Garden Mae’s Kitchen offers a variety of community programs, including gardening workshops, cooking classes, and youth education initiatives. These programs aim to promote healthy living, self-sufficiency, and environmental stewardship, making the garden a cornerstone of community resilience and engagement in Englewood.
As part of its collaboration with ReSOURCE, Earl’s Garden Mae’s Kitchen created an Ancestral Staff and Art Installation. Community young people worked with a teaching artist who provided the history of African staffs and their impact on Afrikan/Afrikan American culture and ancestry. In addition to the staffs, which use reclaimed wood and other materials, the installation will showcase other youth projects, such as portal doors and Ndebele-style mural panels.