Mary Lou Williamson, a long-time Greenbelt resident, has always been a garden guru. Compost has been both physically and symbolically important to her story.
During the mid-1900’s, Mary Lou and her family lived in Chicago most of the year, but spent her summers in southwest Michigan. This countryside getaway was full of memories. She remembers her mother ordering day-old chick and duck eggs to hatch. They would bring the small birds to the farm after school ended, each summer. She watched as her dad built a fence by hand to contain the chickens with a special gate that led to a compost pile that her mom wanted! 
She reminisces, sharing that she was curious about what it took to create compost and at just four years old she was big enough to carry the bucket of kitchen scraps from the house to the compost pile. This became one of her duties during the summer. Even the chickens got involved, poking their heads about the pile and eating what they wanted.
In her adult life, she found love, got married and moved to Greenbelt. Already knowing how much food can be turned into compost, it’s disappointing to not be able to recycle your scraps. Luckily, they found a home with enough space for her to compost. Though, shortly after establishing a small composting space, it had to be removed to be in compliance with neighborhood regulations. “I wrote a long letter about the value of having a compost pile in your yard and the value it brings to your garden. I mean, what you got in return was marvelous!” she exclaims.
In even larger yard where she was allowed to have a pile. She decided to double the length of her composting space, much to her excitement. She would walk down the hill every day or so and add her vegetable scraps to her pile. Her green efforts continued into adulthood.
Mary Lou continued to compost for years at the home she shared with her late husband. She could go about her daily activities until a recent hip surgery limited her ability to hike down that hill every day. She was missing the love of her life and the nostalgic pleasure of composting.
“When my husband died, I had a tree planted in my yard and in a local park in his memory. The tree in the park was planted in dirt that was not ideal and I told them that. I had the one in my yard planted in a garden rich in compost. You can guess which one survived!” Mary Lou says with pride.
Just when things began to go downhill, two more positive things blossomed.
The City of Greenbelt curbside program was introduced in 2024 and Mary wanted to sign up after she saw green bins around the neighborhood. Now, she participates in the City program and all she has to do is fill a bin with her scraps, just like she did at 4 years old. She now carries her food scraps a short distance to her curb for weekly pick-up by Compost Crew.
And that compost pile? She got the fence taken down and turned the area into a flower garden that blooms every year! A local gardener tends to it, mulching leaves and adding the mulch to the garden before and after winter.
“I’m just so grateful,” she says with finality.
Want to hear about the start of the Greenbelt program? Visit our blog, Greenbelt Goes Green.
