Detroit nonprofit uses community garden project to teach young men life skills

A local nonprofit organization is doing its part to beautify a neighborhood on Detroit's east side while teaching young men important life skills.

A group of teens, including Joshua Mortin with the Kappa Detroit Foundation, filled a brand-new garden bed with dirt on Saturday.

"We believe in hard work. We believe in helping others. So we want to do as much as we can to help the community that's around us," Mortin said.

That's exactly what they're doing by transforming a corner lot near the intersection of Canton and Sylvester streets into a community garden.

"We thought this would be a great opportunity to improve the aesthetics of the community and also provide some environmental assistance with food insecurity," Emmanuel Idowu, Kappa Detroit Foundation president, said.

The first phase of the project is building the infrastructure, including clearing away brush and debris, tilling the soil and putting up fencing.

"I actually have done some of this work before because I'm really a big person in community service, so I love to do community service. I love to help others," Mortin said.

Phase two will start next spring.

The fruit and vegetables grown will be free to the community.

"We are planning to establish a gazebo, brick pavers, benches," Idowu said.

The Kappa Detroit Foundation is for students in eighth through 12th grade.

"We lead by example as members of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. We have a responsibility to inspire service in the public interest," Idowu said.

There are 60 kids in the program this year learning leadership skills that will benefit them in the future.

"I really learned how to build a team and how to really lead people to do the right thing," Mortin said.

The project was made possible by a $10,000 Ford Philanthropy grant.