Suzanne Stewart
Staff Writer
It’s commonly known that everyone is expected to be quiet in public libraries, but that rule was thrown out the window last Thursday evening at Green Bank Library as members of the Grow This! Throwdown team celebrated its second-place win.
The team members were gathered in the meeting room to virtually attend the Throwdown Awards ceremony hosted by the WVU Extension Nutrition Program.
The Grow This! Throwdown was a statewide gardening competition which pitted county against county and was launched in January 2024. County teams were put through a series of challenges and earned points by recruiting members to their Facebook page, attending webinars and submitting records of produce grown.
The competition ended October 31 and when points were tallied, Pocahontas County was found to have earned nearly 20,000 points.
“We could not have asked for a better first year for the Grow This! Throwdown,” said Kristin McCartney, Extension specialist and SNAP-Ed coordinator with the WVU Extension Family Nutrition Program in a press release.
“Growers really embraced the competition and have pulled together to earn points for their counties — all while doing good things for their communities.”
As part of the year’s challenges, participants created more than 50 seed libraries around the state where the public could share and receive free seeds. Other participants created “edible landscapes” in their communities by replacing ornamental plants with edible ones in public spaces.
The Grow This! Throwdown Awards ceremony was hosted by the mysterious Mr. Grow This, who stood close to the camera so his identity could remain private, much like Charlie of Charlie’s Angels, he said.
The top three teams were recognized, with Preston County winning first place and a $10,000 grant; Pocahontas County winning second place and $7,500; and Berkeley County coming in third to win $5,000.
Individual awards were also presented, and Susan Morrison was recognized for harvesting and submitting 775 pounds of produce for the Harvest for Health challenges.
“We’re excited to see how winners will use this grant funding to make their communities healthier places to live,” McCartney said in the press release.
Members of the Pocahontas County Grow This! team will brainstorm ways to use the grant funding for community projects to improve the health of residents.
When Mr. Grow This announced the winner, the stream switched over to the Green Bank Library feed where the team members were shocked to be presented with a large check by WVU Extension Farm to School coordinator Eryn Neyer.
Team spokesperson Hallie Herold thanked everyone who participated and made the team successful.
“This is incredible and such a surprise,” she said. “Really Tammy [Hively] was the one who got us all started and everybody contributed – lots and lots of people who are not here tonight.”
At the end of the broadcast, Mr. Grow This said it’s time to get ready for the 2025 Throwdown and told the teams to get ready for an even bigger and more competitive year.
WVU Extension Family Nutrition Program’s work is supported by the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) from the USDA Food and Nutrition Service.
