A new spring program from the Newcomer Welcome Centre is looking to bring together women and girls from Moose Jaw through the power of gardening — and there’s still time to get involved.
The new gardening program is offered as part of the Healthy Living Project at the NWC, and it is open to women and girls interested in learning gardening skills, getting outside for some social interaction and practicing their English language skills.
“It will be a kind of come and go as you please, help when you can sort of thing,” said Brynn Stephanson, information advisor and project organizer. “I think it will be a great way to share food and ideas, build relationships [and] create community engagement between newcomers and Moose Jaw.”
The NWC has rented a plot at the Yara Community Gardens, and the program invites women to take part in planting and maintaining the plot from seeding to harvest. The plan is to plant veggies that participants will take care of throughout the summer.
“We did a poll in our group asking what to plant, and so it’s going to be a lot of common vegetable and vegetables that they use to cook with their traditional meals,” said Stephanson. “Anyone who joins us to help even just once or twice will be more than welcome to take some for themselves, and maybe if we have enough, we’ll be able to (take produce) to the farmer’s market.”
Those who join in with the program are welcome to bring any level of gardening knowledge with them, from beginner to expert, so long as they’re willing to share their skills with others.
Stephanson explained that the project offers a great opportunity for women to learn more about how to grow a garden in a Saskatchewan climate, as well as a social opportunity in a safe, outdoor space.
“It's just a way to share food and learn how to garden, both for beginners and experts who can bring their knowledge and share with us,” said Stephanson. “Maybe they had gardens back in their home countries but things might be a little different here, with the shorter growing season.”
Although the gardening project is mainly aimed toward newcomer participants, Stephenson also said that women and girls of all backgrounds are welcome to join. Currently, there’s about ten participants expressing interest, but still room for more.
The garden will need lots of maintenance throughout the summer, so Stephanson is hoping to see volunteers from all walks of life join the group to help out.
“We want to facilitate connections, to be able to form one big community,” said Stephanson. “So if anyone is interested, newcomers or community members, our emphasis is just on having more women and girls involved.”
The over-reaching goals of the project are multiple, she continued, beginning with the desire to see participants learning about living a healthy lifestyle and making connections within the community — within the NWC community as well as the community of Moose Jaw as a whole.
“We want to encourage women to get out outside, even if it's just going for a walk or to the garden, and to meet other women in our community, whether that means Canadians or other newcomers,” said Stephanson. “Especially with COVID, we just want to give them a reason to get out of the house, have their own time to themselves or with friends.”
Planting the plot is tentatively scheduled for May long weekend, and Stephanson said that the NWC will likely be looking for some more participants to help on that day, as well as throughout the summer to maintain the plot.
Anyone interested in getting involved in the new gardening project is welcome to contact the Newcomer Welcome Centre by phone at 1 (306) 692-6892, through a Facebook message, or by emailing Stephanson directly at mjmcgateway@mjmcinc.ca.
