On May 29, 2014, a group of five students and three faculty from Tokyo Horticultural High School spent a morning tilling the earth and planting vegetables at the Ambassador’s Residence. Ambassador Kennedy joined students after the planting to chat about their interests in agriculture and her own vegetable garden back home in New York. The students were fulfilling a promise made by their Principal earlier this year, when Ambassador Kennedy recognized the Future Farmers of Japan organization and the FFA for their 35 years of successful exchanges and collaboration. The students will tend the garden throughout the summer and the vegetables from the garden will be used in meals prepared by the Ambassador’s Chef, Brock Kuhlman. The history of the vegetable garden, also known as the Residence Garden, dates back to 2009 and is part of the USDA’s global network of People’s Gardens.