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Last Updated: Feb 15, 2010 - 2:25 PM |
If you’ve walked by Swede Haven lately, you may have noticed a garden growing, tucked behind the west-most row of apartments, but visible from the main parking lot.
Ringed by a cheerful row of marigolds, the garden sports a variety of vegetables and an inviting mulched path through its center, beckoning the visitor to come see what’s growing within its borders.
The garden is a joint effort of the Swede Haven residents and A Place at the Table, Inc., a newly formed non-profit organization headquartered in Stromsburg. On Wednesday evening, July 15th, these two groups came together to celebrate a “Garden Party” with a barbeque on the patio of Swede Haven.
The Garden Party was well attended by both Swede Haven residents and volunteers from the area. Some volunteers of A Place at the Table hail from as far away as Sutton, but several made the trip up for the Garden Party. In all, about forty people enjoyed the meal of hamburgers, baked beans, corn on the cob, watermelon, and ice cream. During the party, several volunteers took time to work in the garden, picking vegetables to replenish the produce rack on the patio. When they were finished, the peach baskets were filled with fresh green beans, cucumbers, beets, onions, zucchini, and peppers. Residents are also eagerly awaiting the harvest of tomatoes, potatoes, sweet corn, and melons.
The garden, which is open for all Swede Haven residents to enjoy, was conceived by A Place at the Table’s founder, Jason Rosenkranz, as a space where volunteers and residents could work together to create not just a garden, but a sense of community among the participants. The fresh produce from the garden nourishes not only bodies, but spirits as well. This purpose was summarized in the meal prayer given by CathyAnn Plumer of Sutton, an ordained minister and volunteer of A Place at the Table.
A Place at the Table began last fall under the name “Servants at Heart”, with an initial mission of serving a monthly meal at Matt Talbot Kitchen and Outreach in Lincoln. The success of that mission prompted the group to incorporate and seek 501(c)3 status as a non-profit organization in the state of Nebraska. The group continues its monthly outreach at Matt Talbot, and has plans to incorporate any surplus produce from the garden into its menus for the homeless at working poor in Lincoln. “The residents have been very supportive of our mission in Lincoln,” Rosenkranz stated, “and some have expressed interest in joining us at some point in the future to help serve a meal there.”
A Place at the Table volunteers have also recently begun visiting the residents of Midwest Covenant Home on weekday evenings, spending time on the patio caring for the container plantings, reminiscing about gardens with the elders, and just quietly enjoying peaceful summer evenings together. Animals have also gotten into the spirit of community, with a dog named Sonny and a rabbit named Max providing companionship for the elders.
Those interested to know more about A Place at the Table are encouraged to visit the group’s website at www.placeattable.org or call 764-2673 for more information. The group is actively seeking additional volunteers, and can provide tax receipts for donations upon request.
On Wednesday, as the Garden Party wound down, Swede Haven residents carried home sacks of fresh produce to enjoy in the days to come. A few remained seated at a picnic table around a plate of fresh watermelon, enjoying the last strains of an unusually cool summer evening. “People ask me why we’re doing this; why here, why now? Our purpose,” said Rosenkranz, “is to be good stewards of this soil, and to care for one another in community.”
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