By KC Stanfield | Contributor

The Atlanta-based nonprofit DIG, which stands for “Development in Gardening,” is returning to Hillcrest for their annual “Reap Life” fundraising event on March 29.

Following the mentality of “give a man a fish and it feeds him for a day; teach a man to fish and it feeds him for a lifetime,” DIG travels to developing countries affected by or at risk for AIDS/HIV, to teach small communities how to build and sustain gardens of their own. The new gardeners can then teach neighboring communities how to grow their own food as well.

“What we’re trying to do is teach people that they have impact on their nutrition and food security wherever they are,” said Sarah Koch, co-founder and executive director of DIG. “There are things they can do to diversify their diets wherever they are.”

According to the DIG website, hunger and malnutrition are harmful to everyone, but people with weakened immune systems — such as those with HIV — are much more likely to fall ill, die or suffer serious complications and have difficulty benefitting from medical treatment.

In addition to educating them on how to enhance their nutrition through gardening, DIG also provides guidance on other aspects of sustainability.

“[One] common misconception is that you have to use chemicals to be successful,” Koch said. “I know that’s not necessarily a misconception here in the U.S., as organic is a big thing, but the places where we work, organic is fairly unheard of.

“People have stopped growing organically in a lot of places and we’re trying to reconnect them to that.”

Each garden costs approximately $5,000, and their goal for the fundraiser is $15,000, which will help renew some projects in Kenya. DIG’s next trip is to Uganda, with travel slated for May.

Last year, the local San Diego community helped DIG raise enough money to plant three community gardens in Kenya. Those three gardens are earning income for those families and allowing them to consume five times the amount of vegetables they did before.

DIG has done similar feats for communities within Zambia, Uganda, Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic and others. The organization also makes sure to stay in touch with these communities by doing follow-ups, evaluations and providing troubleshooting assistance.

Founders Koch and Steve Bolinger were inspired after Bolinger helped repair a West African hospital’s garden during his time in the Peace Corps. The patients’ health improved, which gave the two entrepreneurs the idea to establish an organization focusing on HIV and AIDS.

“Being able to come in and work with them and help improve what they’re doing, grow healthier, more diverse produce and also for less cost, is really interesting for people,” Koch said, adding that nutrition is particularly important for other vulnerable groups, pregnant and nursing mothers, and the elderly.

Koch and Bolinger officially launched DIG in San Diego in 2007.

“Steve was closely connected to the San Diego community, as he had been living there for some time before joining the Peace Corps,” Koch said. “He reached out to a few friends like Big Mike, Michael Mack, Art Kelleher, Nicole Murray Ramirez, Wayne Back, Eric Shearin, David Perkins, Brian Voogd and others for support.”

Encouraged to hold a fundraiser in San Diego, the inaugural event raised the money needed to launch their first project — an HIV clinic in Dakar, Senegal, that proved so successful, Koch said both Bill Clinton and Laura Bush made visits.

Koch notes that while DIG’s offices are now based in Atlanta, they will always consider San Diego home and have made it a goal to return annually for the Reap Life event.

“It is the place we can always go back to and not only find support for our work, but passion and community for the cause,” she said. “Perhaps it’s because San Diego has been touched by the ravages of HIV and the innate understanding that how we nourish our bodies can have a life-saving effect.

“Or, perhaps it’s because so many in this community have fought stigma and discrimination in their own lives; I don’t know,” Koch continued. “What I do know is that the DIG supporters in San Diego understand community. They have shown time and again that we are connected in more ways than we are not and that compassion and love transcends borders, gender, health, and economic status.”

The upcoming Reap Life event will provide an opportunity for DIG supporters to meet with board members and the people leading the projects. Attendees will see a short film about DIG, participate in silent and live auctions, and enjoy food and drinks.

General admission tickets for the event are $15 and include entrance and appetizers. “Home Gardener” tickets are $100 and include entrance, appetizers, a drink ticket, and special recognition during the event.

For those unable to attend but wishing to get involved, there are many ways to do so. The “Monthly Farmer” option is a one-year, $25-per-month commitment, which comes with two “Home Gardener” tickets to the Reap Life event that can be given to the attendees of your choice.

You can also donate through the website, purchase items from the “garden” store on the website, and even “get your hands dirty” by joining DIG in achieving their missions both locally and abroad as a volunteer.

DIG offers short and long-term internships and also — for a fee — others the opportunity to travel with DIG in small groups and enjoy a mixture of vacation and volunteerism; a combination of sightseeing and “giving back” to these impoverished nations.

The ninth annual Reap Life event will be held March 29, from 3 – 5 p.m. at T Lounge, (formally Bamboo Lounge), 1475 University Ave., in Hillcrest. For more information find the “Sundowners in San Diego” event on Facebook or visit reaplifedig.org.

—KC Stanfield is an editorial intern with SDCNN. 

—Contributing Editor Morgan M. Hurley contributed to this report.