Events
Recent Events
MCPS Safety Day
On May 11th, ...
Arthur Sherwood Field Trip
Article coming soon!
Rockville Science Day
On April 21st, GxG was invited to the Annual Rockville Science Day. There, members introduced and explained the plastic bag recycling project, as well as the relevant scientific knowledge of plastic recycling. They also gained lots of scientific knowledge from viewing other stands. We were happy to see a diverse range of people interested in the plastic recycling project and willing to take action to recycle at home!
MCPS Youth Climate Summit
On April 13th, GxG members attended the MCPS Youth Climate Summit, where GxG leaders presented and introduced younger students to our plastic bag recycling project: Be a Zero Hero! Additionally, they lead students to weave mats out of discarded plastic bags and then played a game to get the concept of plastic bag recycling into the hearts of the students. The event was a great success and the organizers and participants were very happy.
G&G Spring Garden Opening
On Sunday, April 7th, we came back to the community garden for the first time after winter. Working together with SEEDS and THRIVE, we brought everything that we used from last year’s garden to start rebuilding the garden again. Spring had finally begun, so we decided to plant some of the seedlings we sprouted into the garden. We started preparing the garden by tilling and weeding the dirt so that it would be suitable for plants to grow. Then, we divided the garden using string and dug trenches that surrounded the beds and filled them with mulch in order to make a path for us to step on. Then, we made a tall fence that surrounded the entire garden and assembled a wooden door. After two hours of hard work, we took a break where we taught everyone about recycling plastic films and gave out reusable saran wrap. It was great to be back in the garden and we’re excited for the new year of planting!
Written by Nathan Tian
Lunar New Year Celebration
On 2/11/24, the second day of the Lunar New Year, members of the CAPA-MC Growing and Giving Club visited the Maryland Chinese Bible Church Chinese School in Rockville to join the New Year celebration and promote the plastic bag recycling project. Volunteers worked in pairs, managing three activities. The first group introduced our club and the plastic recycling project; the second group displayed real objects, conducted a brief assessment of the audience, and provided stamps; the third group distributed cotton candy. The event was highly successful. Many thanks to all volunteers - Kenneth Shue, Kylie Zhang, Eunia Zhong, Jason Yao, Alice Zhao, Linda Chen, Nathan, Janette, and parent mentors - Jun Zhou, Zhen Yuan, and Jane Shue. Club members also welcomed MCPS BOE member Ms. Julie Yang, who visited our table and took a group picture with club members.
Past Events
Seeds Starting Talk & Free Potting Workshop
On March 2, the Growing & Growing Club, will collaborate with Thrive Club and SEEDS club to prepare fruit and vegetable seeds for the community garden. Additionally, our gardening expert, Jihong Ma, will give a talk to the club for directions and information. Light refreshments, including pizza, will be provided. Spaces are limited, so sign up using the QR code as soon as possible!
Recycling and Hiking
On January 1st, 2024, the first day of the New Year, our club went to the Great Falls in Bethesda, Maryland to hike the trail and pick up trash along the way. There were eight families that attended the event, 2024 New Year's Re"hike"ling Day. We brought bags and trash grabbers to collect and store the litter we found while walking along the trail. Our goal was to clean up the environment, educate people about our plastic recycling program, and use this experience as a way to celebrate the new year. Before the hike, student leaders of the club gave a brief talk about the plastic recycling program to new club members and other participants. They used some examples of plastic (bags and films) to teach others how to recycle plastics properly. Our club's new year resolution is to reach as many people as possible in our community and collect 1,000 lbs of plastic bags and films.
Holiday Season Recycling
The holiday season is quickly approaching and the shopping season has begun! We're introducing our new holiday season recycling event! If you haven't noticed, online shopping is accompanied by a lot of plastic packaging, especially plastic bubble wrap. Please do not throw these plastic waste into a regular trash can; instead, you can collect them and send them to the special plastic bag recycling bins in the following stores. We hope that you can help to reduce plastic pollution and protect our living environment during the holiday season.
Garden Fair
On December 16th, CAPA-MC Garden Club members publicized the plastic bag recycling program at the US-China Experimental Chinese Garden Fair held in Quince Orchard High School. The leaders and members did a great job of introducing the club and recycling project, and handed out lots of materials.
Assembling Chairs Made From Recycled Material
CAPA-MC Garden Club members gathered to assemble a bench made from recycled plastic material. The plastic bags used to create the bench was collected from our plastic recycle project and was awarded to our club. It will be donated to a community in the near future.
Garden Cleanup
On October 29th, members of CAPA-MC Garden Club worked together to clean out the community garden in order to start off a new year. They dug out old plants and tore down fences to get ready for new fences and plants. This event was also a collaboration with CAPA's SEEDS organization; kids with learning disabilities also came to help with the garden cleanup and participated in an activity where they potted winter plants. There was also a small but warm ceremony to send off old members and to welcome the new leadership team.
Montgomery County AAPI Celebration
On May 29th, CAPA-MC Garden Club attended the Montgomery County AAPI (Asian-American Pacific Islander) Celebration at Senaca Valley. They then also donated vegetables to CCACC.
Watershed Science Seminar
An atmospheric scientist, Dr. Jingfeng Huang will be hosting a seminar about climate change and the Chesapeake Bay on Zoom at March 4th, 8-9:30pm.
Master Gardener Seminar
A biologist and Urban Gardener, D'Anna Jensen hosted a seminar about smart planting on Sunday, February 26th on Zoom.
Zoom Meeting with Dr. Chen
On Sunday, December 4th, at 5pm EST (2pm PDT), Dr. Xingyuan Chen hosted a zoom meeting on how watersheds are studied and modeled.
On Saturday, December 17th, Growing & Giving members held an exhibit at Richard Montgomery High School about plastic recycle and demonstrated a watershed model.
Growing & Giving members had a field trip to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation headquarters in Annapolis on October 24. Reports are published here!
CAPA-MC members attended the 2022 Montgomery County's Back-To-School Fair on August 27th at Wheaton Mall.
CAPA-MC members attended the 2022 Chinese American Convention & UCA National Youth Convention in Washington DC from July 14th to July 16th.
CAPA Annual Meeting
On June 11th, CAPA-MC Gardening Club members gathered at CAPA's Annual Meeting.
Spring Vegetable Seedling Sale
On May 21st, CAPA-MC Gardening Club members held a vegetable seedlings sale for the community. They sold tomatoes, squashes, peppers, etc. For leftover seedlings, please contact capa.gardening@gmail.com.
Zoom Meeting with Dr. Chen
On May 8th, the Growing and Giving club members had a Zoom meeting with Dr. Chen, an Earth Scientist, for the watershed seminar. They discussed watershed related issues, and how to protect them.
Zoom Meeting with Master Gardener
On May 1st, the Growing and Giving club members had a Zoom meeting with Master Gardener D'Anna Jensen. They talked about how to create informative posters about protecting the watershed in order to educate the community.
Garden Opening 2022
On April 2nd, the Growing and Giving club members opened the community gardens by setting up fences, preparing the soil, and planting some seeds.
Giving Back
In October 2021, GGC members harvested Napa cabbages and donated 35 bags to CCACC senior center.
Assembling Chairs Made From Recycled Material
CAPA-MC Garden Club members gathered to assemble a bench made from recycled plastic material. The plastic bags used to create the bench was collected from our plastic recycle project and was awarded to our club. It will be donated to a community in the near future.