Sow Seeds of Peace, Help Binghampton Grow

Dear Friends,

At Carpenter Art Garden (CAG), we’ve learned that peace doesn’t arrive fully grown—it must be planted, nurtured, and fiercely protected. For more than a decade, we’ve cultivated spaces in Binghampton where children can grow art, grow food, and most importantly, grow into themselves. Today, we invite you to help us plant a new season of seeds.

Seeds of Peace is more than a program—it’s a movement. We are planting a mixed variety pack of seeds in every child we serve:

• Seeds of Confidence in children who have never been told their voice matters.
• Seeds of Creativity in schools where art has been cut from the curriculum.
• Seeds of Hope in neighborhoods carrying grief, trauma, and loss.
• Seeds of Possibility & Purpose in teens who believe their only choices are to survive, not to dream.
• Seeds of Joy & Safety in places where play is rare and safe spaces are scarce.
• Seeds of Financial Empowerment through paid apprenticeships where passion and income can coexist.

These seeds answer real problems: isolation, limited opportunity, silenced stories, and communities starved of color and expression. Through murals, gardens, field trips, mentorship, and apprenticeships, our young people are rewriting the narrative of their neighborhood—from “forgotten” to flourishing.

This year, we are launching a bold campaign to raise $100,000 to fully grow Seeds of Peace. With your support, we will expand programming, fund teen apprenticeships, and launch powerful intergenerational projects. And through our new partnership with Cornerstone PreK–Elementary and Lester Prep Middle School, CAG will bring “Art on the Go” to hundreds of students each week—during school and after school—because creativity should never be a luxury.

Your gift plants the seeds:

• $100 — Art supplies for one young artist
• $700 — A week of intervention-based art and garden programming
• $1,000 — A stipend for a teen apprentice to lead and learn
• $5,000 — Community workshops and events that foster neighborhood pride and belonging
• $8,000 — Field trips that expand imagination beyond city limits
• $10,000 — Professional staff and interns to ensure consistent care
• $12,000 — Paid teen workers to gain job skills, work experience, mentorship, and confidence in contributing to society
• $15,000 — Restorative music and movement sessions that help youth process emotions and build inner peace
• $25,000 — Funds an entire season of programming for hundreds of students

When you give, you are not just funding a program—you are cultivating futures. You are declaring that food is freedom, art is history, and our children are the historians and change-makers of tomorrow.

Together, we will grow joy, resilience, and peace in Binghampton.

Join us. Invest in Seeds of Peace. Help us raise $100,000—and watch what grows.

🌿 Together, we grow. 🌿

For the Children,

Ayanna Murray
Interim Executive Director
Carpenter Art Garden

Looking to enroll a student?

Youth Programming Application

Teen Apprenticeship Application