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Young Vandals hit Community Garden

By KFBB News Team

Story Created: Aug 30, 2010 at 5:29 PM MST

Story Updated: Aug 30, 2010 at 5:29 PM MST

The recent rain certainly doesn't hurt local gardens, the cooler temperatures, on the other hand, can hurt harvest. But, it wasn't Mother Nature who was responsible for damage at one community garden. Over the weekend, the community garden at Park Place Health Care Center was vandalized.

Gardeners say three young boys ages eight to 11 are responsible for the mess. Gardener Amy Grisak says one gardener caught them in the act and followed them to their homes. “One father was very upset, he does basin farming, so he knows what it takes to grow crops, and it sounds like he was pretty upset. He was really standing behind us and not happy with his boy at all,” Grisak says.

Several crops were ripped out of the ground. “Smashing squash, ripping corn, pulling onions and carrots, that type of thing,” Grisak describes. She says these aren't the only ones to cause trouble in the garden. Saying, “These are the boys who got caught, who are taking the fall for everybody else. They’re the scapegoats.”

The River City Garden donates food to Meals on Wheels and the Food Bank. “As everyone knows, with the community and with the economy now, that’s needed more than ever. By destroying it this late in the season, they’re taking food out of people’s mouths who really need it,” Grisak says.

One gardener says most of the ripped up crops aren't salvageable. “The corn is gone, and it won’t rejuvenate; the carrots, we might be able to pick up some to just use at home,” Grisak says.

She says after a rough summer it’s sad to see all the hard work uprooted. “Everybody’s been waiting anxiously for this moment, so it’s kind of like having the rug pulled out from underneath them,” Grisak says.

She already has an idea to punish the vandals. “It would be great if the parents would want the kids to come out and help us clean up at the end of the year with our plots for the food bank. And I would really like it if they apologized those gardeners that they hurt,” Grisak says.

Traci Hronek at the Pea Pods Community Garden on 9th Street says they haven't had any vandals yet. She says the gardeners there spend time building relationships and educating the community about all the work it takes to keep a garden going.

The River City Harvest Garden does not have a fence because organizers never thought it was necessary. Grisak says clean up has already begun, and is not sure how long it will take. This is the second year of the community garden, which has doubled in size compared to last season.

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wolfcat said on Wednesday, Sep 1 at 10:16 PM

I don't know anyone involved in this at all as far as I know. lol. All I can say is, the kids I know with "good" parents (meaning parents who are in complete control and probably have two parents etc etc) NEVER do things like this and the kids who turn out worse for wear as adults did do this stuff as kids because they were less supervised. I'm not saying anyone's a horrible mother blah blah blah, I just wonder if you've been a bit laissez faire in explaining consequences of actions. Punishment and community service only does so much. Maybe you parents could explain all the consequences of the victims in detail? I thought some things were fun when I was younger until people gradually showed me all the ways other people suffered for what I did in my naivete and I wish I could undo some things.

no name said on Tuesday, Aug 31 at 7:21 PM

Ok Jenny I'm not who you think I am I have nothing to do with the apartments you lived in or live in.My son has a mutual friend as your son.Mind you hes well behaved like my son. But I know stories and I will be respectful and not publish them but I do know what troubles he's had. As a concerned person for your son I'm sayin he needs to not roam all over he needs discipline and he needs stability. If you didnt defend him I would think you were an aweful mom but you have so yay for you but dont be in denial either that wont help him ok.

THE MOM said on Tuesday, Aug 31 at 4:22 PM

I am going to make this clear for one last time, MY SON has NOT been in trouble before and he will NOT end up in prison. I am a good mom and take care of my children. He is not a trouble maker nor are the other boys. The situation is under control and the boys ALONG WITH MY SON are being punished. Not every child has a PERFECT life like all your kids and we do plenty of good things togther as a family. I may have become dramatic with the nasty comments you have posted but your dwelling on an issue and giving our apartments a bad name becuase of this incident. BTW phone calls have been made and the situation has become controlled and I am not going to waste anymore time with replies because certain people think they know everything. Boys are boys and also followers regardless if they admitted it or tried to lie.

no name said on Tuesday, Aug 31 at 2:36 PM

I don't know these children but I do know the mother. I am very concerned about the issues thes kids have and will have. This isn't the first issue for this little boy at such a young age which is a scary thought. I hope for his sake his mom Jenny gets control and begins to pay attention and set boundries before he ends up in prison. Its not ok to let your 10 yr. old wander unsupervised Jenny. There was a comment on here about boys will be boys thats BS I have a ten yr old as well and he would never destroy others property so its not just a boy thing its a trouble maker thing.

SS said on Tuesday, Aug 31 at 11:00 AM

Tawyna and rubysue....the boy did not have special needs, she has a daughter with special needs but that in no way would make it an excuse. These other parents want to badmouth this mother and I know for a fact that she is doing a very good job of parenting. Boys will be boys and it was not like just her son was out there so personally as someone who works with this family, if you truly don't know someone it is just best to keep going on with your own lives and let the parents take care of the discipline. Nobody is making excuses and if you notice the comment from the director the boys are acting very grown up and apologizing for their dumbness. This too shall pass over.

parent said on Tuesday, Aug 31 at 10:52 AM

Thank you Amy for that comment. I know that this has been a sad situation for everyone involved and I can not believe that Lynn and the others want to bad mouth a parent so much when they live in the same environment and don't do anything until Jennifer stands up for her son. I have read these comments and I think that certain people have gone overboard when she was only trying to say that there was more to the story and the boys are doing everything in their power to make it known that they truly are sorry. You have the situation under control and I am positive a lesson will be learned if it has not already. Thank you.

rUBYSUE HATER said on Tuesday, Aug 31 at 9:15 AM

rUBYSUE, pLEASE TAKE THE CAPS LOCK OFF. iT MAKES YOU SEEM LIKE AN IDIOT WHEN YOU CAPITALIZE EVERY WORD EXCEPT THE FIRST LETTER AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SENTENCE. yOU HAVE NO CREDIBILITY HERE.

Anonymous said on Tuesday, Aug 31 at 9:12 AM

***Grabs Popcorn*** Who needs to the Jerry Springer Show when we have the lovely tenants of Aspen Village!!! Please let Lynn and Jennifer be the main card at the next Wednesday Night Fights!!!

Amy Grisak said on Tuesday, Aug 31 at 8:59 AM

I talked to the parents last night, and everyone was wonderful. Every one of them agreed the boys will help with our fall clean up and apologize. There were no excuses. In my mind, it couldn't have gone better. Stuff happens;these boys will pay the consequences of their actions and we'll all move on. Jennifer's son answered the phone last night, and couldn't have been more polite. I don't think these are bad kids, and we'd love for them to have a plot in the garden next season under the guidance of Master Gardeners. It could be a positive outcome for everyone.

annon3 said on Tuesday, Aug 31 at 8:23 AM

what has happened to the golden rule?

tawnya said on Tuesday, Aug 31 at 8:20 AM

sounds like some kids need to have more PARENT involvement in their lives. as a parent of a special needs child i can understand the strugles, but what i can not understand is the thinking that since a child is special needs that they can do what ever they want. in the first place its hard to be a parent, then to be a parent of a special needs, that makes life extra hard to deal with. i wish that i did know what happenedat the garden, but since i happen to spend moretime with my kids i dont have the time to wonder nor care about what other kids are doing. thats their parents job!

RUBYSUE said on Tuesday, Aug 31 at 7:44 AM

OH FOR @$#*%$ SAKE GROW UP, THE KIDS WERE WRONG AND IF THEY'RE GONNA LEARN THEY HAVE TO PAY THE PRICE FOR IT. iT DOES NOT MATTER WHAT WALK OF LIFE THEY COME FROM OR WHO IS RAISING THEM. tHEY NEED TO LEARN THERE ARE CONSEQUENCES FOR WRONG DOING NO MATTER WHO YOU ARE. sO THE ARGUEMENT SHOULD BE WHAT ARE THEY GOING TO DO TO RIGHT THIS WRONG. pARENTS YOU HAVE NOW RUINED ANY POSSIBLE FRIENDSHIP BECAUSE YOU HAVEBIG MOUTHS AND BAD ATTITUDES. wHEN MY SON WAS A BAD KID HE PAID THE PRICE AND HE LEARNED, MORE THAN ONCE AND I NEVER HAD THE ATTITUDE YOU TWO HAVE.

provider said on Tuesday, Aug 31 at 6:35 AM

Is it any wonder these kids got into some trouble??? Just look at the way the parents an the community in which these children live-- have responded... sad

mistie said on Tuesday, Aug 31 at 12:41 AM

kids will be kids. it doesn't mean the parents are bad. seriously, for your kids sake, quit this vickering over parenting skills. it's ashame that the kids seem to be acting more like adults than the parents.

Jennifer Heitman said on Monday, Aug 30 at 10:29 PM

I don't care who knows me or my kids. Do you walk in our shoes? We were not aware of the story until a friend called and I know that the director failed to advise us of anything after coming up with a plan. We as a team that was involved are making the phone calls, was too late to make an update tonite. You are not going to single out the other children and parents...that is not fair! Did you or Lynn stand outside with us since these boys are so bad?? I mean besides the perfect one, of course. That is exactly how this complex is and has always been-Nobody says anything until something happens and then judges and points fingers. I am not ashamed to say who I am becuase I am telling everyone that I am a parent who's child did wrong and WILL learn from it. If you think you can do something better, I am all ears, since who ever you are know me so well. This is about the garden not ASPEN VILLAGE!

Lynn said on Monday, Aug 30 at 10:23 PM

so i'm not that only person. besides you dont know me! why would i want to know you? anonymous said today at 9:49 PM Jennifer, knowing your child personally I know this isn't his first issue with disrespecting others personal belongings. I just hope that you both will learn from this and you can make this a time to teach him right from wrong and make sure he really understands how he hurt others. I hope seriously that this will teach him and he won't get into major trouble later on. If he doesn't learn soon that is were you are headed. Please Jennifer for you sons sake take this seriously and don't worry about the news story and the drama worry about your son and his actions

Jennifer Heitman said on Monday, Aug 30 at 10:19 PM

To clarify to Lynn....don't worry about my kids and I am in no way whinning, I am standing up for myself becuase the news or the director did not state the positive conclusion and I know the community will be proud of these boys for cleaning up the WHOLE garden and helping the gardners understand the labor that was destroyed. Don't worry about my family, worry about your own. My son is not a hardened criminal and I am sorry that Cory has a golden halo when he was involved more than once but you fail to act like an adult as usual. You stand out there and watch all these so called bad children and say nothing...HMMM really makes me wonder how that reflects your parenting skills. Like I said, and the other parents outside, you ad your husband ran inside like cowards instead of learning what exactly happened. Who are you to tell me to have kept my legs closed??? For real...I didn't realize that my kids were your business as you are NOT the victim in this story.

ANONYMOUS said on Monday, Aug 30 at 10:16 PM

Jennifer, what right do you have to use anyone else's names? Looks like more than just Lynn know you kids and have seen what is going on. This wasnt a biased story at all. It was right on the money. Your son was 1 of the 3 caught doing it. Good that the boys said that they will help clean up their mess. But why did it happen in the first place? Since you say that the kids have been told that they could pick some of the food from the garden, why wasnt it said before?

Anonymous said on Monday, Aug 30 at 10:09 PM

LYNN...you really need to shut up and listen to what you are saying. Everyone knows who you are and that your PERFECT. Jennifer is a good mother and you don't know the struggles she deals with when you have a special needs child but boys are boys and follow other kids that they think are their friends. Her son is not as bad as you are saying and just becuase you are the nosey one of Aspen Village and don't tell parents when you witness a child doing wrong, does not make you any better than someone else doing bad. Grow the heck up and stop being so childish! Jennifer has taken all the drastic measures that she needed to so her son knew what he did was wrong. She told the lady to call the cops but since you ran inside and did not hear what happened than don't comment! For a parent to tell another parent to keep her legs shut, which has nothing to do with this story, just shows how ignorant you really are! We all know that your kids are flipping angels!!!!!

Lynn said on Monday, Aug 30 at 10:08 PM

WAAAAAAAAAAAWAAAAAAAAAAAWAAAAWAAAAAAAAAAWAAAAAAAAAAAWAAAAWHINE WHINE WHINE WHINE wait, i'm not JENNIFER HEITMAN.

Lynn said on Monday, Aug 30 at 10:05 PM

good for you jennifer! go right ahead and use OTHER people's names! GOOD FOR YOU! point the finger! yep, GOOD FOR YOU! you have no idea who i am or how i parent! mostly i fell sorry for your kids! glad that you feel that you can put a MINOR's name on a WEBSITE! what will the parent think of you? who is the child and who is the parent in your home? POINT YOUR FINGER all that you want! you were the one who decided to get on here and whine about how the store was done, but it would have been alot better for you and your kids to TALK to the station instead on getting on here! whine whine WHINE...

Jennifer Heitman said on Monday, Aug 30 at 9:45 PM

Lynn..Cory did not tell the truth and maybe if you did not coward inside your house you would have heard MY SON be honest. I know who you are and you don't know me nor the other mothers...what kind of parent are you? Your husband digs in the dumpster and creeps the tenants out! My kids are good kids and you don't even know us but keep talking cuz I don't care what you think and feel. This is not about you and I know the other parents are disappointed that you can say what you are. I will have a talk with Greg and make sure that any more rumors need to be addressed with that tenant ONLY!!!! I am going to say this for the last time...I apologize as a parent to the community for my sons distruction BUT if you would have the update from the Director who was in this story...she spoke with all of us and MY SON and a conclusion has been agreed upon. Stop making this worse than you are and bringing up other no related issues.

Lynn said on Monday, Aug 30 at 9:39 PM

Casper. i have EARS and WINDOWS! I live in the same area! I have EYES, i see what these kids do and have done before. if it was my garden i would have called the cops! i still think that the cops should be in this. for at least one of the boys this isnt the first time that they have been caught doing something wrong! just that first time its made the news! what will these kids do next is what i wonder!!

Lynn said on Monday, Aug 30 at 9:34 PM

the reason that i can comment on thistory is because i LIVE in the same area and do know the boys and their parents! out of the parents the father is the only one who is been taking care of his son. jennifer, the reason that i know what kind of mother you are is because of the way your kids act! this isnt the only thing that one of your kids has done! breaking items by the dumpsters is one. the boy you say was lieing? the is so funny, are you talking about your son?

Jennifer Heitman said on Monday, Aug 30 at 9:01 PM

Wolfcat...I am not sayung that this story is degrading, there were comments said last nite by some people that came over and spoke with us, and if you are a parent you would not have appreciated it either. I just completed a media course in college so I am in perfect awareness of a biased story...maybe you and all the others should have been there and you would know the complete story but the whole thing in itself is very said and I am sorry that my son was senseless and disrespectful that he would commit such an act and disappoint the community.

Casper in NC said on Monday, Aug 30 at 8:57 PM

Lynn, are you stupid or just read what you want to? She said he son was disciplined & that he is going to try to make up for what he did. So how do you come up with she's not being a parent & needs to step up & take care of her kids? The kids admited what they did wrong & are taking resopnsibility for thier actions. You need to get a grip on reality. She knows her son did wrong, thats nto what her comment was about. It was how the story did not talk about happened to the kids after the fact. For you to make it seem like only the dad mentioned in the article is going to disipline his child & the other parents are going to let it slide. You don't know what goes on behind closed doors or how the other parents are handling it.

Jennifer Heitman said on Monday, Aug 30 at 8:55 PM

Just to make it clear to everyone who thinks they know the whole situation....neighborhood children, not these boys, were told by a gardner or community garden representative that they were able to pick a few things. Of course, this was not the case last night but since this story is biased, thought I would let you all know so whomever that individual is, they will be identified.

Jennifer Heitman said on Monday, Aug 30 at 8:51 PM

You are so off base and there is no way you can sit and tell me how these boys are not taking responsibilty becuase they ARE! I do take very good care of my children and this is not an issue of bad parenting. There are other kids involved and at least 2 of the boys did not try to lie about it. The one boy that you say is stepping up becuase he is being made too was the one who could not tell the truth so I think in this situation, you should not point fingers when the other boys even offered to give them their allowances LAST NIGHT! But let me assure you YES i do care that my son got involved in this and he is making it right with the director and the gardners, as well as I am as a parent. You don't know the whole story either but are quick to judge other people in a situation that has not been told truthful.

wolfcat said on Monday, Aug 30 at 8:51 PM

lmao, what part of this story is in any way degrading? This story is not insulting anyone. It sounds full of woe, pain, and anguish and you just sound self centered. Grow up and maybe your kid won't do these things. This story is one of the least biased news stories I've seen in this town so brush up your reading comp.

Anonymous#2 said on Monday, Aug 30 at 8:49 PM

goes to show what happens when you dont watch your child. jennifer, not only was your son there doing wrond so was you DAUGHTER!......children from the ASPEN VILLAGE APARTMENTS have no need to be in the area that they were in! Thank god that they didnt let the horses out!

anonymous said on Monday, Aug 30 at 8:49 PM

Jennifer, knowing your child personally I know this isn't his first issue with disrespecting others personal belongings. I just hope that you both will learn from this and you can make this a time to teach him right from wrong and make sure he really understands how he hurt others. I hope seriously that this will teach him and he won't get into major trouble later on. If he doesn't learn soon that is were you are headed. Please Jennifer for you sons sake take this seriously and don't worry about the news story and the drama worry about your son and his actions.

Lynn said on Monday, Aug 30 at 8:24 PM

here are the FACTS! jennifer, your kid did WRONG! was CAUGHT doing WRONG!step up,be a MOTHER not a FRIEND! maybe you should be raising your kids better,maybe then they wouldnt be doing stuff like this. but the main question i wanna know is this, DO YOU CARE THAT YOUR SON DID THIS?

Lynn said on Monday, Aug 30 at 8:21 PM

there isnt a reason that kids 8-11yrs and older should be out where they know that they shouldnt be! how sad that others will have to live with what the kids did.

Lynn said on Monday, Aug 30 at 8:19 PM

jennifer, you really need t o grow up and watch your children! i wondered when something like this would happen. i see these kids out all day everyday, running around doing things that they shouldnt be doing and the parents dont care! out of the boys who got caught i know that there is one who does feel sorry and who will step up because he will be made to. you dont like someone telling you to step it up and take care of your kids.. tough deal with it!

Jennifer Heitman said on Monday, Aug 30 at 8:16 PM

Anonymous....For one I am abeing a parent and my son has been disciplined. They are going to fix what they did and never denied walking on the plants. It is embarassing as a parent and I have raised my son better than to be disrespectful. They are going to give back to the community and realize exactly what they did to the community. There is no excuse and I am not making any. I am not ashamed to say who I am but I think reporters need to once again get the WHOLE story...they did not murder anyone for pete's sake!

Anonymous said on Monday, Aug 30 at 7:59 PM

Why don't you act like a parent and discipline your child, instead of making excuses for the behavior. There's is no question that every kid gets in trouble, but not every kid destroys other people's property. Hopefully a lesson will be learned from this incident.

Jennifer Heitman said on Monday, Aug 30 at 7:46 PM

I am very disgusted in the way this story has made the boys sound like criminals. I was one of the parents and was just as upset as the other parent but the attitudes of the other representatives was unfair and I will not stand for anyone to degrade me. These boys have agreed to help fix what they destroyed but this story is making them out to be burglars and that in no way was the situation. This is a very biased story and all the facts are not included.

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