Adventures in Gardening: BBQ and Basketball

Welcome to Milford Gardens!

Milford Gardens is a nature-oriented
program designed to teach youth about ownership, stewardship and
teamwork while helping them deal effectively with stress and
attachment issues.

Located on a one acre plot of land just west of Milford, youth will plant, grow and harvest the garden as well as manage the selling, consuming and giving of all garden produce. Families of the youth in our program and members of the community will also share in the garden harvest.
Built around Garden Based Learning, this field therapy program provides relevant work-integrated and community service activities for youth.
We believe that supporting personal growth and fostering each person's God-given abilities can have a huge, long-term impact on the lives of children, their families, and the communities in which they live.

Our ultimate goal is for Milford Gardens to be self-sustaining and earn a profit from the sale of the extra produce. Income from sold goods will go toward the operational cost of the garden as well as a scholarship fund for post-secondary education.
We invite you to join us on the adventures we will have this summer!

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

BBQ and Basketball

The GTS Youth Club was once again able to come out and help us in the garden. Afterward, we went to the Milford City Park to have a cook out and, of course, play some basketball. A big thanks to Tim and Jean Springer and Kevin and Carmen Yeackley for helping us make it all happen!

A highlight for me was all the boys taking off their shoes so they wouldn't get them dirty in the garden. It had rained recently making the ground soft, but not sopping. I got a kick out of everyone walking barefoot and being able to feel the dirt on their feet. Growing up, I spent many summers barefoot on my family's acreage, including our vegetable garden. There is nothing like the smell or feel of rich, brown dirt.

Many of the youth in the club live in the North central area of Lincoln, which does not have any full-court basketball courts, if you can believe it! They were so excited to see a full length court at our park...finally a real game!

Everyone had a great time! They stayed until it was too dark out to see very well. Even at that point, one of the kids asked if they could stay longer and play some football.

Thanks Everyone!