Growing roots in Rondo

Arunata Schulz

Located in Saint Paul’s historic Rondo neighborhood, the Peace Sanctuary Garden sits at 855 Aurora Avenue as a spirited meeting place where neighbors, elders, and friends come together to grow food, share stories, and nurture community. Filled with okra, garlic, peppers, and strawberries, the garden thrives as a symbol of renewal and hope.

This urban oasis rises in resilience, facing the structural trauma woven into Rondo’s history. Decades ago, the community was permanently changed by the construction of Interstate 94, which cut through Rondo, demolishing homes, uprooting families, and devastating Saint Paul’s vibrant African American neighborhood. Today, the Peace Sanctuary Garden is a living symbol of renewal, giving a place for physical, spiritual, and mental healing. It stands as a grassroots movement to reconnect and restore a neighborhood once fractured by concrete.

The Peace Sanctuary Garden
Since the Peace Sanctuary’s beginning, the garden has grown into a collaborative, team-run space built on the lifelong passion of Melvin Giles, a Rondo resident who resided in the iconic purple house connected to the garden. Giles, alongside local artist Seitu Jones and his brother, community advocate Metric Giles, founded the Peace Sanctuary Garden in 2008. Melvin Giles also drew from his time with the Ramsey County Garden Educators, where he met enduring collaborators Megan Phinney and Diane Dodge. Together, they sought to amplify Rondo’s voices, mend the food justice gap, and bring outside opportunities directly into the neighborhood’s hands.

Today, the space functions as a community-run organization, and the garden belongs to anyone involved in sharing the collaborative responsibility of being in community, with support from the Urban Farm and Garden Alliance (UFGA) and the University of Minnesota Extension Land Connectors.

The Children’s Garden Program
In 2012, Phinney was inspired to co-create a youth-focused program, seeing the Peace Sanctuary Garden as an open classroom. Phinney recalls noticing the colorful birdhouses lined up in the garden and how peaceful it was – a space for children to learn from. Phinney wanted to connect local youth directly with the soil. Giles agreed, as he had recently heard from his niece that strawberries grew on trees. While humorous, it displayed a larger disconnect between many urban children and the sources of their food. This simple misunderstanding highlighted that many kids learn about plants in classrooms but miss out on the hands-on learning of working with soil. The Children’s Garden Program was created to close this educational gap.

The program runs every Wednesday during the summer, bringing together residents of all ages to care for the garden. Designed to be intentionally intergenerational, the program features science and culture-based lessons and snack-making using produce they harvest, such as berries for parfaits, a fan favorite. Over the years, the program has become a treasured neighborhood asset. The nearby daycare often attends, and some children have grown up alongside the garden, returning each year. They also host a National Night Out block party for the avenue.

The Children’s Garden creates stewardship through teaching youth where food comes from and how to care for the land around them. The program empowers kids to gain a greater understanding of nature and guides them to discover career paths that aren’t traditionally represented in schools. In doing this, it furthers the Peace Sanctuary Garden’s broader mission of healing, education, and community relations.

Looking ahead
Today, the Peace Sanctuary Garden enters a new chapter. In July 2025, the community grieved the loss of Melvin Giles, whose insight and leadership shaped the garden. Phinney, a longtime educator and co-founder of the Children’s Program, also retired after more than a decade, but their legacy remains to guide the space every day.

Following these transitions, Metric Giles stepped into a leadership role and has begun guiding the garden through what he describes as a period of “regeneration.” Giles explained that, like the garden itself, the organization must continue to grow and change over time. By strengthening community partnerships, the Sanctuary can continue creating valuable impact.

Many changes have begun in the garden over the past year, including a new collaboration with Model Cities. This partnership is especially important because it provides access to indoor space and addresses the challenge of summer rain, which has frequently led to session cancellations. This partnership allows programming to continue regardless of the weather, providing greater consistency for families and deepening the garden’s integration with other organizations. Members are also working to ensure that program leaders reflect the Rondo community, and to support a growing effort to recruit volunteers, educators, and neighborhood leaders.

Stephanie Wright is a new addition to the Peace Sanctuary Garden and has previously worked in the community, co-organizing JazzFest and launching Golden Thyme Coffee & Cafe.

Peace Sanctuary member Jacquelyn (Jacquie) Thomas, who previously worked with UFGA, envisions the garden’s ongoing evolution as a vibrant neighborhood hub that fosters food access and connections. She emphasizes the importance of understanding the garden’s core values of care and pride, which have always distinguished it. Going forward, Thomas hopes that coming generations will continue to uphold these morals, ensuring the Sanctuary remains a source of empowerment and alliance within the Rondo community.

By creating opportunities for children to learn from people who share similar backgrounds, the garden hopes to strengthen its role as a community-centered space.

The Peace Sanctuary Garden continues to be a place where people gather to grow food, share knowledge, and find healing from past and present injustices. Through this new stepping stone of change, the garden honors many who have built the foundation for those who will carry it forward.

Arunata Schulz is a Journalism and Design second-year student at The New School in New York City. She spent five summers volunteering and interning with the Peace Sanctuary Garden.