Scott, Scott, The King of Pots

Scott, Scott, King of pots, how does your garden grow? 🌱

With silver bells🔔, and cockle shells 🐚? 

That’s a definitive “NO!,” says SCH science department chair Scott Stein who has been harvesting the earth 🌎 outside his back door—not just on Earth day—for several decades. He started backyard gardening when his twin daughters were young. It was an outlet for them to do something together, talk, and get outside, one of the central goals of the SCH outdoor program. The family often chose to plant things that you couldn't find in the supermarket, such as heirloom kales and tomatoes 🍅. There were many years, however, when the fruits of the garden barely made it inside, the sugar snap peas, string beans, and carrots 🥕 getting consumed as soon as they were picked! He shared, “I also grow strawberries and blueberries, mostly for the sheer delight of walking outside with a bowl of cereal 🥣 and just plucking the berries and dropping them in the bowl!”

In recent years, Stein has fired up a variety of peppers with seeds coming from all over the world to stoke his spicy passion 🔥. With notable glee he announced, “I have a shipment of seeds coming in this week!” Alongside the peppers, you’re likely to find a bumper crop of cucumbers, too, as his pickling is in hot demand from colleagues. “What I love,” says Stein of his cukes, “is that they invigorate your mouth and taste fresh, even though they’re pickled.” 😋

Within the SCH community, Scott is also well known for his quick wit.  So, Scott, with this post, we’ve had a little fun ourselves.

Our 2021-22 social media campaign, Fired Up Fridays, pays tribute to the message engraved in the stone mantelpiece above the fireplace in the Henry Library that reads: “Kyndle yr awne ffyre” (Kindle Your Own Fire). Each Friday we will shine a light on members of the school community whose passion runs deep for a particular interest, activity, class, or hobby. #FiredUpFridays posts on Insta and Facebook, so be sure to follow along!