STOCKTON, Calif. — With rakes, shovels, scissors and plants in hand, volunteers set out on a mission Friday morning to beautify a local homeless shelter and give those recuperating while transitioning out of homelessness a safe and peaceful space in downtown Stockton.
Gospel Center Rescue Mission held a "Green Thumbs" event at their Women’s and Men’s Recuperative Care Centers Friday with the goal of constructing a garden for center residents.
"I had this vision some time ago," said David Midura, CEO of Gospel Center Rescue Mission. "I saw people out here just recuperating, and I wanted them to have a place. I thought, 'man if that was me, what would I want to be there?'"
The center is used by homeless people recently released from hospitals who still need time to recuperate while also trying to overcome homelessness.
When members of the Stockton Garden Club first saw the volunteer request for "Green Thumbs Day," they knew it would be a natural fit for their organization.
Club Vice President Carol Burns brought the idea of helping to the club's board which approved it, opting to donate money for plants and volunteer time to oversee the project.
"Our garden club really has a heart for sharing education," said Burns. "We believe that gardening is really healing. There's a real power in getting your hands in the soil and growing something."
Just as important as helping supervise the garden project for Burns was the types of plants that the group chose to sow.
"What we want to do to with lavender and the native plants (is to) draw bees, birds and butterflies, and the lavender repels mosquitoes," said Burns. "Then we have an herb garden that we're hoping at some point the residents can help maintain, and the kitchen can use."
For Midura, the extra support from the club Friday morning turned the project into an educational experience for clients at his center.
"I love the gardening club, them coming out here and helping, it's just a beautiful thing," said Midura as garden club volunteers behind him taught center clients how to plant. "The cool thing is you have people that have never planted and so we got people learning a skill set by being here and paying it forward."
Officials with the gardening club say they hope to make the Gospel Center Rescue Mission visits more frequent, offering to stop by the center quarterly for garden maintenance.
"I think these residents are already feeling the effects," said Burns. "They're creating something. Not just the healing power of the plants themselves to use as herbs, but just getting in the garden and growing things."
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