The Somerset West Village Garden broke ground in 2015 when a small group of Somerset West residents and passionate vegetable gardeners sought a way to assist the local street people with their extremely challenging circumstances. They came up with the idea of a community vegetable garden – that would offer access to employment, nutrition, ablutions and ultimately, opportunities to rebuild their lives and reintegrate into society.
The proposed plot of land was Barlow Park, a derelict piece of ground that was under-utilised and used by vagrants as a squat – with the lack of ablution facilities creating a health hazard.
Within just four years, the garden become an urban oasis, fully – and beautifully – established. Volunteers from the Thomas House of Hope work in the garden in exchange for tokens – one token is earned for each hour worked. Back at the Thomas House of Hope, tokens can be exchanged for clothing, a hot shower and a wholesome meal, with twenty tokens earning them an ID. In addition Tuesday is the very popular harvest day when fresh goods are sold to the public, to help fund the gardens.
Kirchhoff’s is proud to have been a founder donor of this very successful and thriving program and continues to supply seed seasonally.
View the Somerset West Village garden website here!
