WEST SACRAMENTO, CA - Thanks to Raley’s and Captain Planet Foundation, Florence Markofer Elementary School in Elk Grove will soon be growing its expansive school garden with additional raised beds, a cooking cart, and curriculum. At 9 a.m. Tuesday, March 31, representatives from Captain Planet Foundation and the California-based grocery chain will join teachers and students to install five new raised garden beds.
Residents in California were invited to nominate a local school to win or expand a Learning Garden. According to the recent release, schools had to be located within 10 miles of a Raley’s grocery store. Florence Markofer Elementary School, located five miles from the Raley’s City at Elk Grove and Franklin Boulevards in Elk Grove, was selected.
The comprehensive Captain Planet Foundation Project Learning Garden expansion package, a $6,000 value, comes with five raised bed gardens, lesson kits, schoolyard garden supplies, a fully equipped mobile garden cooking cart, and strategies for garden maintenance.
The Project Learning Garden program provides a dynamic, hands-on context for multidisciplinary learning, integrating nutrition, science, social studies, math, and language arts. Students expand their palates through healthy food tastings and lessons about food origins; conduct authentic science investigations; apply math concepts through real-world environmental design; explore historical agricultural practices; and strengthen writing skills across disciplines.
- WHEN: This Tuesday, March 31, 2026, 9:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.
- WHERE: Florence Markofer Elementary School, 9759 Tralee Way, Elk Grove, CA 95624
- WHO: Diedre Wood, Principal, Florence Markofer Elementary School
- Zoe Edwards, Food for Families Operations Manager, Raley’s
- Leesa Carter, President & CEO, Captain Planet Foundation
- Pat Hume, Sacramento County Board of Supervisors, District 5
- David Reilly, Elk Grove Unified School District Superintendent
- Jenifer Avey, Elk Grove Unified School District Assistant Superintendent
- VISUALS: Students will take part in the full installation process, building five raised garden beds from cedar planks, filling them with organic soil, and planting vegetables and herbs.
- MEDIA: To RSVP to attend the event and to coordinate interviews, contact: Kristy Jozwiak, [email protected] or (602) 741-5161 (mobile/text)
- WHY: Raley’s donated the Learning Garden as part of its ongoing commitment to helping children develop lifelong healthy habits and increase access to fresh fruits and vegetables.
Research and more than 25 years of classroom experience show that early exposure to fresh produce increases children’s willingness to try and regularly eat those foods. Daily, hands-on access to gardening helps shape behaviors far beyond the school lunch line, empowering students to make informed choices that support a lifetime of healthy meals.
