Anawim’s Connection Garden is back for another season! Stacie O'Connor, Anawim's Supportive Services Manager, helped kick off this program for a second year, creating a fun community garden space for Anawim tenants living at our eastside locations.
The garden is located in the greenspace between the two apartment communities on Hubbell Ave., The Crest and Baker Creek Senior. The goal of the garden, in addition to providing fresh and healthy food, is to help build and strengthen community by connecting children and families with their senior neighbors. A wide variety of vegetables were planted, including everything from tomatoes and peppers, to sweet potatoes, greens, and cucumbers. Tenants will be responsible for maintaining the garden throughout the season, but the volunteers will be checking in and available to answer questions and offer gardening tips and advice.
This year we were lucky to have volunteers from Lutheran Church of the Cross come out to help plant the garden. Members of the church’s “Hunger Team”, Kristie Kolsrud and Craig Perry, were looking for a meaningful way to address the issue of food insecurity in the community. The church already has a strong connection with several of the families who live at The Crest through their involvement with the summer lunch program, Kids’ Café. Helping out with the garden seemed like a natural connection.
