Growing Fresh Hope “[Resident] Sue Pederson mentioned the victory gardens of WWI and WWII. It reminded me of the stories my grandmother and parents told me. This is when I started using this name for our project.”
IN A RELATIVELY SMALL CORNER of Masonic Village at Elizabethtown’s sprawling 1,400-acre campus, 61 carefully measured garden plots blossom with flowers, fruits, vegetables and, as of March, a little extra love. Mixing passion and purpose, resident gardeners have been able to continue doing what they enjoy and help others during uncertain times. In March, with the COVID-19 situation unfolding and grocery store shelves emptying, Masonic Village’s 73-member Garden Club knew there would potentially be greater needs on campus, including at the Bleiler Caring Cottage and Masonic Children’s Home, as well as at community food banks. Having produce available for residents to pick up would also decrease their need to visit public grocery stores.
they’re able to grow and provide to Masonic Village’s campus restaurants. “We all care about each other here at Masonic Village and all step up when there is a challenge. This is who we are,” Ray Horn, chair of the Garden Club, said. “Selfishly, the garden is a great place to go in times like this. As the late Jim Tarman told me, ‘The safest place is in the garden.’ It’s easy to socially distance in a garden, and many wear face masks and gloves.
A group of 12 gardeners began work on the victory gardens, deciding who would plant what and which supplies were needed. This effort became serious when on March 20, Gov. Tom Wolf closed all garden centers. Through Ken Burd’s and Jana Smith’s efforts, Seedway and Agway donate seeds to the club at the end of each growing season to use for the following year. Jim donated grow lamps and other equipment to the club to use to grow tomatoes, peppers and squash from seed. Barry Hitchcock and Ray Laubenstein started raising the vegetables for the victory gardens. Ray Horn and his wife, Pat, transplanted Egyptian Walking Onions (which came from Bill “Doc” Riley, one of the original
Emails began circulating among members as they planted the seed for an idea to take several unused plots (normally reserved for weed control) and increase the amount of produce MasonicVillages.org
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