Kendall Rae Johnson is only 6 years old, but she’s already making the world a better place, one fruit or vegetable at a time.
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When she was 3 years old, Kendall loved playing in the dirt, often spending time learning how to garden from her great-grandmother, Laura “Kate” Williams.
“She started out in a patio garden and the patio garden grew from a little bitty something to, by the time her fourth birthday came, we had a full-fledged garden in our backyard,” Kendall’s mom, Ursula Johnson, said.
As she got older, Kendall’s fascination with the process of turning a tiny seed into food continued to grow, as did her garden. Her friends took notice, and she’d happily give them tours. They’d regularly be found playing with shopping carts and checking food out from Kendall’s “grocery store.”
Once she and her family moved to a place where they were able to set up an actual farm, Kendall’s parents helped her become a certified farmer, making her the youngest one in the state of Georgia and the youngest Black farmer in the country!
With this certification, she’s created an official business called aGROWKulture and is now able to apply for grants and scholarships. She can also purchase land under her business.
Kendall and her family are always looking for new ways to help the community with their farm. One of their many programs is called Bloom; this monthly gardening club invited families to help Kendall plant, harvest, and produce subscription food boxes.
Another of the family’s programs takes donations to help build garden boxes for families and urban communities.
In addition to large scale projects, Kendall is also passionate about helping kids and their parents learn more about where their food comes from through gardening clubs and classes.
Although Kendall is only 6 years old, she loves being given platforms to speak about what she enjoys. She’s in several farming organizations and is no stranger to making speaking appearances and attending conferences.
“When you go to these meetings and you go to these conferences and things of that nature, nine times out of 10 you won’t see anyone as young as Kendall there,” Ursula said. “It was so important and so inspiring that they invited her to just come, sit in, listen even if she doesn’t understand what is going on.”
Kendall is currently raising $10,000 to help make her farming process more efficient with two high tunnels, soil, dirt, and lumber. That money will also go toward creating an agricultural science learning space for kids.
With so many projects and events in the works, it may seem difficult to summarize all Kendall does as a farmer, but her mission statement posted on the aGROWKulture website sums it up perfectly.
“My mission is to meet new friends, make new things & inspire other kids.”
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