{"id":834923,"date":"2026-05-31T16:18:13","date_gmt":"2026-05-31T16:18:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/834923\/"},"modified":"2026-05-31T16:18:13","modified_gmt":"2026-05-31T16:18:13","slug":"volunteers-cultivate-calm-confidence-for-key-school-students-in-garden","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/834923\/","title":{"rendered":"Volunteers cultivate calm, confidence for Key School students in garden"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Jacob Sanchez, Fort Worth Report
May 31, 2026<\/p>\n

Key School volunteers Kanani Mahelona and Amanda Dickson struck up a conversation one day about how they could take their service to the next level.<\/p>\n

Mahelona suggested a garden because he knew firsthand how beneficial it would be for neurodiverse children, whom Key School serves. During the pandemic, he planted a garden at home for his grandson and saw it light the boy up.<\/p>\n

Dickson, whose daughter attends the school, hesitated. She was by no means a green thumb. But the idea took root \u2014 especially the possibility of growing native plants to attract pollinators.<\/p>\n

The plan was realized as a lush green space where the private school students build confidence, practice self-regulation and connect with nature alongside classmates and community volunteers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s just something about being outdoors together and building something together,\u201d Mahelona said.<\/p>\n

Mahelona\u2019s and Dickson\u2019s work creating a garden and teaching students how to tend it earned them recognition in 52 Faces of Community<\/a>, Fort Worth Report\u2019s weekly series highlighting unsung heroes.<\/p>\n

Dickson doesn\u2019t want or need recognition \u2014 she sees her work as a necessary part of being a parent. She\u2019s involved at both her kids\u2019 schools, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just important to give back to the schools and what they\u2019re doing for my kids,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Know an unsung hero in Tarrant County?<\/p>\n

Tell us about them by filling out the form below. <\/p>\n

Starting a vegetable garden was a natural extension of giving back for both Dickson and Mahelona. Four years ago, they started growing vegetables. Now, the space has grown to include a pollinator-friendly native landscape and flowers.<\/p>\n

The kids immediately latched onto the idea of getting into the dirt, planting seeds and picking vegetables weeks later.<\/p>\n

Harvest day is special, Mahelona said. Students pluck tomatoes and rip leafy greens out of the garden. The kids wash the veggies. Then an adult chops what\u2019s been freshly picked into a salad.<\/p>\n

\"\"Volunteer Amanda Dickson harvests a cabbage from a planter on Jan. 7 in the Key School garden in Fort Worth. (Courtesy | Key School)<\/p>\n

Students get so excited, Dickson said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of them will try things that they might not try if you serve it to them at home from a bag or in a restaurant,\u201d Dickson said. \u201cThey\u2019re like, \u2018I grew this.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Well, most of them. Some scrunch up their faces \u2014 a sign they don\u2019t want to try the vegetables. But that\u2019s OK, she said. They\u2019ll take the veggies home to their parents.<\/p>\n

Mahelona loves seeing students getting out of the classroom \u2014 and away from technology.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cThe impact has been so powerful that it has inspired us to expand our outdoor learning opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n

Leslie Vasquez, Key School\u2019s director of education<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u201cI really want the kids to get an appreciation for the outdoors, for fresh air and sunshine,\u201d he said. \u201cI want them to really learn to take care of and protect their environment and to understand their own health depends on the health of the environment in which they live.\u201d<\/p>\n

Getting kids in nature is key to good mental health, Dickson said. Feeling peace in the garden after a rough day or when agitated is soothing for students \u2014 even when getting outside is mandatory for a class.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope it\u2019s a place where they can have fun, learn and find ways to self-regulate in nature,\u201d she said. \u201cThose mental health aspects are huge, especially for our kids who sometimes have trouble with their systems being overloaded with stimulation.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Volunteer Amanda Dickson shows students how to pat down soil in a planter on Sept. 21, 2023, in the Key School garden in Fort Worth. (Courtesy | Key School)<\/p>\n

Leslie Vasquez, the school\u2019s director of education, said Mahelona and Dickson have grown gardening with six students into a thriving club featuring a cross-section of students, teachers and community members.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor many of our students, especially those with learning differences, the garden offers a space to build confidence, practice patience, and develop a deeper sense of ownership and accomplishment,\u201d she said. \u201cThe impact has been so powerful that it has inspired us to expand our outdoor learning opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n

The school is creating a dedicated outdoor classroom for even more learning opportunities, Vasquez said.<\/p>\n

Mahelona sees his service as paying it forward to a school that has transformed kids who once struggled into students who love education.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe feel like we\u2019ll never ever be able to repay the debt that we have to this school for the progress that we see in our own children,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Jacob Sanchez is education editor for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at jacob.sanchez@fortworthreport.org<\/a> or @_jacob_sanchez<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This <a target=”_blank” href=”https:\/\/fortworthreport.org\/2026\/05\/31\/volunteers-cultivate-calm-confidence-for-key-school-students-in-garden\/”>article<\/a> first appeared on <a target=”_blank” href=”https:\/\/fortworthreport.org”>Fort Worth Report<\/a> and is republished here under a <a target=”_blank” href=”https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nd\/4.0\/”>Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License<\/a>.<img src=”https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fortworthreport.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/cropped-favicon.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1″ style=”width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;”><\/p>\n

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