About Us
We Seek to Nourish and Support Our Local Community.
A nonprofit organization, the Hillsborough Community Garden donates its produce to local families in the Orange County area through PORCH Hillsborough. We rely on a steady team of volunteers and a part-time paid garden manager; who all work long hours in the garden. Our goal is to provide a variety of organically grown vegetables and greens to families in need. We have just completed our second year! The impact is profound—each vegetable harvested represents hope for healthier meals shared around family tables.
For additional info, read these articles in the The Daily Tar Heel and The News of Orange County
Our Journey
Hillsborough Community Garden began as an urban garden with individual plots. Several volunteers came up with the plan to transform it into the Hillsborough Community Garden. We rely on grants and donations to keep our work going. Located along the Eno Riverwalk, we often have visitors wander in to find out what we are all about. We continue to grow! This year we harvested over
1,870 lbs. of produce compared to 930 lbs. last year.
Our Staff
John (Team Leader)
Margaret (Volunteer Coordinator)
Margaret (Volunteer Coordinator)
John, a landscape painter and native of North Carolina, returned to the charming town of Hillsborough a decade ago. When he's not painting, he enjoys biking around town and gardening with others, finding joy in knowing that the food grown in the HCG nourishes the community.
Margaret (Volunteer Coordinator)
Margaret (Volunteer Coordinator)
Margaret (Volunteer Coordinator)
Margaret is a retired children’s librarian, a hiker and a writer. She appreciates the sense of community that the garden project creates; we learn to work together as we take on the challenges of—growing healthy plants, watering and hot days. Margaret is grateful to the dedicated volunteers essential for sustaining this project. It’s rewa
Margaret is a retired children’s librarian, a hiker and a writer. She appreciates the sense of community that the garden project creates; we learn to work together as we take on the challenges of—growing healthy plants, watering and hot days. Margaret is grateful to the dedicated volunteers essential for sustaining this project. It’s rewarding to see the Hillsborough Community Garden process go full circle; from growing vegetables to harvesting to loading up the truck and delivering to distribution sites.
Abigail (Garden Manager)
Margaret (Volunteer Coordinator)
Abigail (Garden Manager)
Abigail works as the lead garden manager at the garden. With advanced degrees in environmental systems and sustainable agriculture, she also has considerable experience working on a number of community and educational garden projects, as well as market gardens. She joined the steering committee at HCG last summer of 2023 to help facilitat
Abigail works as the lead garden manager at the garden. With advanced degrees in environmental systems and sustainable agriculture, she also has considerable experience working on a number of community and educational garden projects, as well as market gardens. She joined the steering committee at HCG last summer of 2023 to help facilitate the growth and vitality of the garden, and thus the community that it is intended to support.
Bartow (HCG Engineer)
Bruce (Garden Facilitator)
Abigail (Garden Manager)
Professor F. Bartow Culp, having eagerly shed his academic robes from the department of Chemistry and the school of Information Science at Purdue University, retired to Hillsborough in 2010, where he immediately fell in with its public spirited citizens. After serving as a Commissioner with the Historic Hillsborough Commission, aka the B
Professor F. Bartow Culp, having eagerly shed his academic robes from the department of Chemistry and the school of Information Science at Purdue University, retired to Hillsborough in 2010, where he immediately fell in with its public spirited citizens. After serving as a Commissioner with the Historic Hillsborough Commission, aka the Burwell School, he joined the nascent organization which became known as the Hillsborough Community Garden (HCG). He currently serves as the HCG Engineer, but also excels in his role as weed puller and mulch spreader.
Chris (Grant Writer)
Bruce (Garden Facilitator)
Bruce (Garden Facilitator)
Chris is the grant writer for HCG, and he delivers the garden produce to the distribution sites in his reliable old pick up truck! After a professional lifetime as a researcher in the field of substance abuse prevention, Chris is largely retired. In addition to supporting the vital mission of PORCH Hillsborough through his involvement i
Chris is the grant writer for HCG, and he delivers the garden produce to the distribution sites in his reliable old pick up truck! After a professional lifetime as a researcher in the field of substance abuse prevention, Chris is largely retired. In addition to supporting the vital mission of PORCH Hillsborough through his involvement in the Hillsborough Community Garden, he is actively involved in the affairs of inmates
both prior to and following their release from Orange Correctional Center.
Bruce (Garden Facilitator)
Bruce (Garden Facilitator)
Bruce (Garden Facilitator)
Bruce is a retired family
practice doctor-
He spends most of his time taking care of his chickens and trying to understand what his bees are doing. He's also in a band- Orange County Lockdown. He runs with his great dog Cassie on trails most every morning and his wife is also a Master Gardener. Bruce delivers food for Table and delivers p
Bruce is a retired family
practice doctor-
He spends most of his time taking care of his chickens and trying to understand what his bees are doing. He's also in a band- Orange County Lockdown. He runs with his great dog Cassie on trails most every morning and his wife is also a Master Gardener. Bruce delivers food for Table and delivers produce to Table from Jim Sander's farm. He works with a great group of folks to help raise food for needy families on beautiful land in Hillsborough donated for this purpose. Bruce's role is the garden facilitator. He's been growing vegetables most of his life but in much smaller gardens.
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