Inmates learn gardening through Benton County Jail program

BENTONVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — Some inmates at the Benton County Jail have been busy pulling weeds and harvesting fruits and vegetables this summer, and it’s all part of the jail’s inmate garden program where inmates on good behavior get to go outside and tend to a garden.

It allows them to give back to people who are facing food insecurity.

The program started eight years ago and ever since then, the garden has grown, the soil has become more enriched and the products have become better.

David Guillermo is picking jalapeños in the Benton County Sheriff’s Office garden. He’s an inmate and takes care of the crops that grow there along with the help of other inmates.

“We got Jesus over here with the okra,” said Guillermo. “Then we got the guys down here with tomatoes and the cantaloupe down there, and we got another guy who does the corn, watermelon.”

The inmates started tending to the garden in April. “As you can see, it turned out beautifully this year,” Guillermo said. “We’ve done it a lot this year.”

“These inmates get to be part of a process of producing something, planting it, nurturing it, taking care of it every day,” Benton County Sheriff Shawn Holloway said.

This is all part of a program created by the sheriff’s office.

“We’ve been doing the garden since I’ve been sheriff over the last eight years,” Holloway said. “We have many different programs. Of all of our programs, I feel this is probably one of our more important ones.”

Holloway says the inmates have to meet certain criteria to take care of the garden.

“They’ve got to be on good behavior. We find a lot of our inmates strive to be on good behavior, so that they can be on this.”

Being a part of something like this teaches the inmates the skill of gardening while serving their jail time, but also helps them in their own lives.

“I think it helps that person grow as an individual,” Holloway said. “Their life is going to be better than it was before they came here.”

All harvested crops will be donated to Helping Hands, a nonprofit dedicated to helping people in need through its thrift store, food pantry and assistance programs.

“It’s nice to give back once in a while because everybody needs help, especially after a tornado we went through,” Guillermo said.

The program will end in October and will start back up again next year. Holloway says he is proud of the work the inmates do in the garden, and hopes to have more programs like this one.

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