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COEJL Activist Receives Joshua Venture Grant

December 23, 2002 - Daron Joffe - known to many in the COEJL community as Farmer D - was recently selected as one of eight young leaders to receive a Joshua Venture fellowship. Joshua Venture provides funding and training to help emerging Jewish social entrepreneurs transform their visions into action. As a JV Fellow, Farmer D will develop his project, “Gan Chaim (Garden of Life)” to provide innovative programming for Jewish Community Centers, camps, and schools through the creation of hands-on environmental education and therapeutic gardening experiences. Gan Chaim will create enjoyable, empowering and educational Jewish experiences for children, seniors, and individuals with special needs in the Greater Atlanta and Athens, GA Jewish communities, while simultaneously promoting environmental awareness and responsible stewardship. The venture aims to set a precedent for social action and improve both rural and urban lifestyles through outdoor learning experiences and access to locally grown organic food. Gan Chaim plans to develop “how-to” manuals and curricula and hopes to make the Atlanta site a learning center and resource for other similar institutions. For more information about Joshua Venture, see www.joshuaventure.org.