Cleveland County Detention Center unveils Oklahoma’s first county jail garden
Cleveland County Detention Center introduces a garden program aimed at rehabilitation, offering detainees a chance to cultivate change and learn life skills.
NORMAN, Okla. —
The Cleveland County Detention Center has launched Oklahoma’s first county jail garden, aiming to provide detainees with opportunities for rehabilitation and personal growth through gardening.
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Detainees at the center are actively involved in planting and nurturing the garden, which they say is helping them cultivate change in their lives.
“I think it’s really cool to put in the hard work and labor and then having the patience to watch something grow, and it makes me think I can do the same thing in my life when I get out of here to really cultivate change,” Lindsay, a detainee at the jail, said. “It gives us purpose, and then we bring back positivity to a place that can be depressing and dark.”
On Tuesday, Gov. Kevin Stitt stood alongside Cleveland County Sheriff Chris Amason to celebrate the milestone.
“Public safety is more than enforcement. It’s about prevention, opportunity and transformation. This garden is an investment in all three of those,” Amason said.
Since planting the garden in August, Amason said there’s been a shift inside the jail, and the women behind the fresh-grown vegetables agree.
“We’re giving them hope, teaching them a skill, teaching them about healthy living,” Stitt said.
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Beyond teaching life skills, the food from the garden helps feed detainees at the jail and is also given to local farmers markets.
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