Somerville Voices

Warren Goldstein-Gelb, director of the Welcome Project, has asked for help in getting the word out about the need for volunteers this Saturday (May 3) in rebuilding the community garden at Mystic Housing, which was a casualty of the Somerville Housing Authority’s need for space for a maintenance shed.

For over 15 years, the Mystic garden was a source of tremendous pride — and food — for the residents, including members of the Asian immigrant community. For two years, gardeners have had to grow their crops in buckets in a parking lot.

With the help of many friends and supporters from the community, their community garden is about to be re-born. I hope you’ll join me in helping out.

I’ve re-printed Warren’s message below. Contact him at warrengg at gmail.com or (617) 623-6633 to offer your time or some help paying for the construction materials. Warren’s note also mentions a great story, with pictures, that appeared in the Somerville News.

Check it out! (You’ll still have all of Sunday to tour the Open Studios!)

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Dear friends,

It’s like an old fashioned barn raising, when a community comes together to help a neighbor build a barn in a day.

Except you won’t be building a barn — you’ll be helping immigrant families at the Mystic Housing Development rebuild their community garden.

On May 3, we need your help as we build fencing and gates for 21 gardeners who have been displaced from their garden for the last two years. It’s the final step in a struggle to return these gardeners to harvesting plants in soil in a community space, rather than in the plastic buckets of a nearby parking lot. Part of the fencing has been constructed in the last 2 weeks by the Somerville Housing Authority.

Now, together with the gardeners, we will build the front fencing, trellises and gates to complete the garden.

We’re asking for a couple of hours of your time and work on Saturday, May 3
(Or if you are available during the week, on Thursday May 1 we’ll be helpng the gardeners move their old materials into their new space).

If you want to know more about this award-winning immigrant garden, some of the gardeners’ stories and the challenges they’ve faced recently were recently described in a Somerville News story.

If you’d like to volunteer, PLEASE let me know if you would like to volunteer on Saturday May 3 or Thursday May 1. Tell me also which time block you’d like to work: 10-12, 12-2, 2-4, 4-6. If you have carpentry skills that would be useful to know as well.

email to warrengg at gmail.com

Funds are still urgently needed to pay for the expenses of moving the gardeners back in. Thanks to everyone’s help so far we’ve raised about $1500 — about 1/3 of the money needed. Most of the individual donations are $25, $50 or $100. We’ve set up a special web site where you can make a secure donation and see who else has given: Visit it at www.firstgiving.com/welcomeproject. Every donation helps.

Thanks for your support of this unique community garden.

(Please forward to others who may be interested)

–
Warren Goldstein-Gelb
Executive Director
The Welcome Project
530 Mystic Ave, #111
Somerville, MA 02145
(617) 623-6633