Growing The Gan With D. Mark Organic Gardens

Local News

Written by Michele Justic

Thursday, 17 June 2010 14:45

A few years ago, David Mark, an energetic and fun-loving school psychologist, came up with a plan to let children connect with nature at a grassroots level (literally!). In an age when many parents reach for the wipes and the Purell as soon as they see dirt on their childrenâ€™s hands, David decided to involve children in gardening.

Bringing this idea to Chabad of the Five Townsâ€™ Gan Chamesh Preschool and Camp Gan Israel seemed an obvious next step as David and his wife, Lisa, attend Chabad regularly and send their younger children, Orly, 4, and Tehila, 2, to the â€œgansâ€ (baby Yehudah, 4 months, will certainly be a happy attendee as well). Gan Chamesh Director Susy Adler embraced the idea and introduced it at the Womenâ€™s Supperette two years ago to an enthusiastic crowd. With children spending more time indoors than at any other point in history, everyone involved in childrenâ€™s development understands the crucial need to involve children in natural projects. The Gan Chamesh yeladim and yeladot loved getting their hands dirty, watching the sproutlets grow, and eating the results of their labor over the course of time. The program continued into the camp year where Gan Israel Director Hadassah Geisinsky incorporated this living, ongoing, science project into her curriculum as well.

Anyone who spends time with children knows inherently that they love to make a mess. But this is more than that. David earned his BA from YU, an MS in school psychology from St. Johns, and an MSW from Wurzweiler. As a school psychologist for the NYC Department of Education and a teacher at DRS, David has expertise in creating curricula. He is known at DRS, at Gan Chamesh, and at Gan Israel for his engaging and exciting style. Heâ€™s not a â€œPlease open your textbook to page 9â€¦â€ kind of guy. He explains, â€œThe main goal is for children to see that veggies donâ€™t come from Brachâ€™s or Gourmet Glatt; rather from the ground, to show them how a seed eventually produces a plant and more vegetablesâ€”keeping them in touch with Hashemâ€™s miracles. Children learn berachos relating to vegetables and what it means to say a borei pri haâ€™adamah.â€ The children from Gan Chamesh and Gan Israel enjoyed planting, watering, and cultivating the seeds, watching them grow, and bringing home fresh vegetables for Shabbos.

Where did David catch this contagious enthusiasm for greenery? He says, â€œI began gardening in diapers, as a young child growing up in the hills of Monsey, NY. My wife and I promote and try to live our lives as whole and healthy as possibleâ€”eating whole foods, etc. Really what it comes down to is following the blueprint for life that the Torah provides for us. We buy as much unprocessed food as possible and grow as many fruits and veggies as possible every year expanding our garden and activities for our children. This yearâ€™s expansions include an apple tree, peach tree, and an apple cider press that is similar to what they used in the 1800â€™s.â€

Gan Chamesh and Gan Israel are thrilled that David has brought his well planned curriculum, as well as his bag of tricks and fun antics, to help round out their preschoolersâ€™ education. If you would like to have David plant an organic garden for your family to enjoy, call 516-241-1177 or e-mail dmarkorganicgardens@yahoo.com.