THE OBAMA LEGACY INITIATIVE
By Chris Hotchkin
The Obama Legacy Initiative
(OLI) was formed in 2015 by Sean Tenner and Fred Greenwood. They wanted to
create a way to honor President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama for
their service to our country and for their humanitarian ideals. President Obama said, “As the wealthiest
nation on Earth, I believe the United States has a moral obligation to lead the
fight against hunger and malnutrition and to partner with others.”
The Organization
The Obama Legacy Initiative is
not a political organization, nor is it affiliated with the Obamas. It is a
charitable 501c3 organization inspired by the work of the Obamas. The mission
of OLI is to provide healthy, nutritious food to Americans who are impoverished
or have difficulty accessing healthy food. OLI partners with community
organizations to distribute healthy, fresh vegetables to people who otherwise
have difficulty obtaining such food. OLI also has corporate partners such as
Home Depot that provide gardening materials. OLI is governed by a Board of
Directors. A special feature of OLI is the inclusion of high school interns as
a vital part of their team who are directly involved in the planning and
execution of OLI programs.
Carrying Out the Mission of
OLI
The Obama Legacy Initiative
grows vegetables in raised garden beds in various locations in northern
Illinois. It also auctions off beautifully painted and decorated raised garden
beds to raise funds for the organization and to encourage those who obtain the
beds to donate some of their produce to food banks. OLI employs the talents of
local artists who decorate the garden beds in original and individually
inspired creations.
OLI has donated garden beds to
community areas in Aurora, Joliet, and Rockford. OLI has garden beds in the
community gardens in Naperville and they donate the produce from these beds to
food pantries such as the Northern Illinois Food Bank, and the Warren Sharpe
Community Center in Joliet. OLI also works to educate people in various
communities about how to grow nutritious food.
Gold Star Memorial Garden Beds
A special OLI project has been
the creation of six beautifully painted garden beds honoring fallen service
members. These beds are located in Naper Settlement in Naperville and were
recently dedicated in an event held at the settlement on Gold Star Family Day,
the last Sunday in September. On Memorial Day 2020 the OLI held a memorable ceremony
in honor of PFC Gunnar Hotchkin of Naperville and presented a beautifully
painted garden bed to Gunnar’s family for their yard. This ceremony was
attended by Congressman Sean Casten and Congressman Bill Foster and a special
video of the ceremony included statements from Senator Richard Durbin, Congresswoman
Lauren Underwood and Governor JB Pritzker. Three OLI interns participated in
the program during the ceremony. I am the Gold Star mother of PFC Hotchkin and
I attest this is one of the most meaningful ceremonies I have attended in honor
of my son. Each of the Gold Star Garden Beds is decorated with a Gold Star
emblem on one end as well as artistic murals on the side panels and has a
plaque honoring the fallen hero. OLI plans to create more Gold Star Memorial garden
beds to be placed in other locations in northern Illinois, using the talents of
local artists. The produce from these beds is donated to food banks and is a
wonderful legacy of the service and sacrifice of a fallen hero. The beds in
Naper Settlement also help to educate visitors to the settlement about Gold
Star families.
If you would like to learn
more about the Obama Legacy Initiative, donate or get involved, please visit
their website at obamalegacyinitiative.org or visit their Facebook page.
