Thursday, October 1, 2026
East Rockaway students will soon have a new opportunity to get their hands dirty and learn outside the classroom, as sixth-grade teacher Kristen Donovan prepares to open a community garden at Rhame Avenue Elementary School.
Donovan, an avid home gardener who has grown fruit trees and vegetables for roughly 25 years, recently received a grant of nearly $7,000 through the East Rockaway School District to establish the garden.
The district also used approximately $11,000 from the Bullet Aid Grant through State Assemblywoman Judy Griffin’s office.
“I actually just got a grant in my district,” Donovan said. “So I’m opening a community garden at my school.”
Donovan shared the news while attending the Long Beach Public Library Garden Club’s third annual Tomatomania contest, where local gardeners gathered to show off their homegrown tomatoes and recipes.
The event marked Donovan’s first meeting with the club, but gardening itself is nothing new for her. She entered a salsa-style recipe featuring both homegrown tomatoes and homegrown peaches, earning an honorable mention in the tastiest tomato recipe category.
Donovan attended the event with Oceanside resident Marsha Volgyi, who won the contest’s biggest tomato category.
The Long Beach Garden Club, an official library program organized by librarian Nicole Menzzasalma, meets monthly and gives area gardeners an opportunity to exchange plants, seeds and gardening advice. The club also maintains a community garden behind the Magnolia Senior Center, where members grow produce that is donated to the Long Beach Soup Kitchen.
Although the club has traditionally met during daytime hours, Menzzasalma announced that it will begin offering quarterly evening meetings — a change that Donovan said will allow her to become more involved.
“I will be joining because I work during the day,” Donovan said. “So I’ll be able to come on their nighttime sessions.”
For Donovan, that involvement will come as she prepares to bring her own gardening experience into East Rockaway’s schools through the district’s new community garden at Rhame Avenue.
