Luke Monk says the Simpson Street Community Garden is a source of pride in his neighbourhood, and something the Thunder Bay, Ont., resident hopes to keep going for years to come.
Monk is one of the lead volunteers at the garden, which is located on the city’s south side. He started gardening when he was six years old, learning the basics from his father, the late Murray Monk, an avid outdoorsman and off-grid trapper.
“My family are Eastern European, and as kids we always had to do our part to put food on the table in Red Rock,” Monk said. “Even all my mom’s side, they always had gardens because times were tough back then, and basically everybody was doing that.”
The Simpson Street Community Garden dates back to the early 2000s and was prompted by growing food insecurity in the area. While it eventually became overgrown, a recent partnership between Willow Springs Creative Centre and NorWest Community Health Centres (NWCHC) has seen the grounds come back to life, with efforts spearheaded by the residents themselves.
“It’s a good skill to pass on to people and it’s enjoyable to me. I like it,” said Monk. “It’s good, healthy work.”
For him, being involved in the project has also been a way for him to give back to NWCHC, where his family doctor, psychiatrist and counsellor are based, he added.
“I got to network with a lot of great people because I’m on disability,” Monk said. “I think this is the best thing we can do for our community.”
‘A place of calm and peace’
Judi Vinni, co-ordinator with Willow Springs Creative Centre, said it’s been a good growing season, with the garden yielding plentiful potatoes, rhubarb, kale, peas, beans, beets, cabbage and broccoli.
The produce is towered by bright yellow sunflowers, which offer spots of shade between the blades of grass beneath.
Judi Vinni, co-ordinator of the Willow Springs Creative Centre in Thunder Bay, Ont., says the organization takes a therapeutic approach to the Simpson Street Community Garden by promoting mental, physical and spiritual well-being. (Sarah Law/CBC)
Community members are invited to take home any of the produce put out on the property’s wooden kiosk along the sidewalk. Volunteers also hand out food to those passing through the back lane, Vinni said.
“We put a therapeutic lens on this project. We know the multitude of benefits that engaging in gardening has for people, from the social, the educational, the physical, the spiritual,” Vinni said.
“It allows people to gather, breaks isolation, it introduces people who maybe haven’t even had a chance to eat fresh vegetables.”
Over the summer, the garden took on four young adults with disabilities who were given their first-ever job experience.
Among this year’s yield are potatoes, rhubarb, kale, peas, beans, beets, cabbage and broccoli. (Sarah Law/CBC)
“They’ve really contributed and they loved it,” Vinni said. “Then we layer on volunteers.”
Last year, the organizations secured funding from the City of Thunder Bay to build a traditional Indigenous medicine garden on site. Visitors are asked to walk slowly, reflect and heal as they follow a labyrinth path toward a stone medicine wheel in the centre.
“It is a place of calm and peace,” said Lisa Long, manager of allied health and social programs at NWCHC. “It’s a place of beauty and peace and joy in this neighbourhood — and life is hard and this place is good.”
A sharing circle will take place at the garden on Sept. 23 with involvement by NWCHC, N’doo’owe Binesi and St. Joseph’s Care Group.
The event, which runs from 1 p.m. until 2 p.m., is being held in advance of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (NDTR) on Sept. 30, with a cultural practitioner offering traditional healing and teachings to students from local schools.
“Just a way to honour Truth and Reconciliation Day and to engage with our neighbours in another capacity — along with food, caring for the soul as well,” Long said.
Vinni said people can expect a big pot of soup, filled with the fruits of the gardeners’ labours, as well as hot apple cider and homemade bread. On Oct. 7, when the garden is officially put to bed, they’ll be serving more fall food.
Those who wish to help out at the garden before the season ends can meet the crew at 427 Simpson St. on Tuesdays from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. and Thursdays from 1 p.m. until 6 p.m.
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