SACO — The cook at Gov. John Fairfield Elementary School says the school’s garden has been vandalized.

Fran Poisson, who also runs a summer food program at the school, started the garden a few years ago as a learning tool for students and to provide fresh vegetables to use in the food she prepares in the school cafeteria.

Thursday morning, Poisson pointed to a sign that had been cemented in place in the garden, now broken off at the bottom of the thick post.

“They broke it right off,” she said.

Poisson said she discovered the broken sign on Wednesday, but said there have been other signs of vandalism at the garden recently, including missing vegetables and apples, and cucumbers and tomatoes that had been thrown in the street.

“We had beautiful apples this year. They took them, they just took them,” she said.

Poisson walked around the garden Thursday morning, pointing to blank spaces in soil where she said plants had once been.

“It’s just so sad that people do that,” she said. “The kids work so hard. It’s so discouraging.”

Superintendent of Schools Dominic DePatsy said it was very disappointing to hear about the alleged vandalism, knowing how hard Poisson has worked on the garden and how much time she’s devoted to the project.

— Staff Writer Liz Gotthelf can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 325 or egotthelf@journaltribunecom.