Who knew a forty pound cabbage would change my life?

Who knew I would (and could) grow a forty pound cabbage that would change my life? My name is Katie Stagliano, I am 11 years old and I was honored as a 2010 Sodexo Foundation STOP Hunger scholar.   I have started and maintain numerous vegetable gardens in which I donate the produce to local soup kitchens, homeless shelters, and families in need. 

My journey to prevent hunger started when I grew a forty pound cabbage from a cabbage seedling. I planted it, watered it, fertilized it, weeded around and even built a cage to protect it until it grew to an enormous forty pounds. I donated my cabbage to a soup kitchen in North Charleston, South Carolina in May of 2008. After serving it to the guests at the soup kitchen, I learned my cabbage fed about three hundred people. Upon hearing that, I knew I couldn’t stop there. If one cabbage could feed that many people imagine how many a whole garden could feed. I now have gardens all across South Carolina and I am anxious to grow my project to other states.

It was an amazing honor to be selected out of 9,101 applicants as a Sodexo Foundation STOP Hunger Scholar.  The trip to our nation’s capital to receive the scholarship was fantastic! My mom, dad and I did a little sight-seeing before the big awards dinner. We visited the National Zoo, Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, World War II Memorial, and the Smithsonian Institution’s Museum of Natural History.  I loved the sightseeing, but also enjoyed meeting other people who are doing so much to prevent hunger in their communities. It was inspiring.  I left Washington wanting to do even more to prevent hunger.

I am currently working with another Sodexo STOP Hunger Scholar, Kevin Williams, to grow my project and all of our efforts to prevent hunger. Together there is no stopping us!

The Sodexo Foundation annual awards dinner made me realize that one person can have a major impact on the fight against hunger.

With the generous grant from Sodexo I know I will be able to start gardens in other states and feed even more people in need.  If you or your children are interested in starting a garden in your own community please go visit Katie’s Krops. I would love to help!

Katie Stagliano is the founder of Katie’s Krops, Katie plants sustainable vegetable gardens that provide healthy food for local soup kitchens. She is a 2010 Sodexo Foundation STOP Hunger Scholarship award recipient. To read more about Katie’s accomplishments and other scholarship award winners, click here or you can watch a story on Katie produced by NBC Nightly News.

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