MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The yard was filled with flowers and original paintings.
For children in the Binghampton neighborhood, this was their creative outlet.
“I don’t think where you live should influence your development,” said one person.
There’s tutoring, gardening and of course art classes, and the children don’t pay for any of the fun.
It was all about keeping them motivated and safe.
Richard Carr’s seven grandchildren went to the carpenter art garden every day.
He said the alternatives to the garden weren’t good.
“I pitch in because they’re having a hard time, and they need to be somewhere they can better themselves,” he said.
Carr said crime and drugs were everywhere in the neighborhood, but it didn’t mean the children had to fall victim to them.
“This is the hood, but the hood can be a good hood,” he explained. “I know sometimes they’re often things kids are dealing with, and this is a chance for them to just come and hang out and be kids.”
Until recently the art garden was an after school program.
Then they had a house on the property renovated, and now they offer year-round activities for the children and the community.
That’s why a local dentist pitched in to help the carpenter art garden.
For the last five years, Main Street Dental participated in “Smiles of Life”.
It’s a campaign where dentists donate all of the money from teeth whitening to children’s organizations.
“We were able to choose a local charity to benefit from this organization and this year we chose Carpenter Art Garden,” said Tara Parker.
If you were to take a walk down Main Street, you would see the artwork of children from the garden proudly displayed on the walls of the dental office.
Parker said sales of the art has been great.
Fifty percent of what’s raised goes directly to the art garden.
Buying this art they said was like planting a seed of hope for all of the children who work in the garden.