Garden History

History Of Kokes Community Garden

The Kokes family embarked on a fascinating journey to arrive where they are today. Kokes founder, Miroslav Kokes, and his wife, Irene, fled their native Czechoslovakia following the Russian occupation in 1946. The couple and their two young sons, Jan and Jerry, eventually made their way to the United States. In 1964, Miroslav and a friend purchased 150 acres of land in Manchester, N.J. The partners built a 1,000-unit adult retirement community, which was the forerunner of Kokes’ active adult communities.

Over the next 55 years, the company built an impressive 20,000 all-age and 55+homes, apartments and mobile homes. The company also built two golf courses, a water and sewer company, two medical centers, two shopping centers and over 60 miles of road.

One of the aims of the Kokes Organization was to incorporate the natural beauty of the New Jersey Pinelands into the community So In 1973, Michael Kokes and his son Jan set aside a large parcel of land for the residents to use for vegetable gardening. The Garden thrived for the next 45 years. When Jan Kokes decided to retire, he wanted to make sure his father’s legacy of the community garden continued in perpetuity.

After exploring a number of options with the Garden Committee, Jan Kokes and Chuck Dougherty the Community Garden President met with Manchester Township Mayor Ken Palmer and developed a plan. The plan called for Mr. Kokes to donate the land to the Township who in turn would lease the property back to the garden committee. In October of 2020 the Manchester Town Council passed an ordinance which would allow the gardens to continue and the name was changed to Kokes Community Garden to honor the Kokes family.