THUNDER BAY -- A vegetable garden is providing both skills and nutrients for local homeless shelter residents.
Despite Saturday morning’s rain fall, volunteers, Shelter House residents and Kwae Kii Win residents began planting the first batch of vegetables in Shelter House’s new community garden project.
The Garden will provide residents with an opportunity to experience the responsibility of growing vegetables from scratch.
Shelter House executive director Gary Mack said the residents have an abundance of skills and talents they aren’t using every day. The garden, therefore, will help to highlight their abilities and teach new skills.
“Anything that we can do to help support people in a positive direction, we are going to be doing,” Mack said.
He believes the garden will be a great summer project for both residents and volunteers because of the many stages that follow the initial garden preparation.
Throughout the summer residents will help nurture and harvest tomatoes, onions, peas and potatoes that will be shared in the Shelter House kitchen.
“It’s a great opportunity for our residents to participate and engage in the community. People from the community will be gardening here as the summer progresses and our residents will be engaged in that as well.”
Mack said the garden should help make a difference for the seven hundred meals the shelter makes a day.
