Today I was putting away some stuff in the shed , and I came across a sign from the first Unity Garden . At the time it was not even called Unity . It was just an question . What would happen if ?? There are a few pictures from that year that have an impact on me . A homeless man pushing a shopping cart through the maze of abandon buildings . Who would think to put a garden there to serve him ?
A shot of the landscape company watering the garden during the dry spell , after weeks of hauling water to the garden in gallon jugs . A crude sign on an old peice of plywood tells it all .
The Unity Gardens has come a long way since the first garden in 2008 .
In 2009 Sara Stewart with her lone garden on Franklin street , and Krista Bailey with her group of gardeners at the Greenhouse community got together to form the Unity Gardens . In 2009 they put together a group of 12 gardens with similar goals . In 2010 the Unity Gardens became a 501-3C non-profit , and grew to 34 gardens . The future plans became more formalized , and a 3 year plan is in place .
I have been helping out with the with the gardens since 2009 , and I will say its been a wild ride . Never did I think it could grow so fast , and have such an impact on the city , and on me . So I guess with fall coming on it seemed like a good time to reflect on a job well done .
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