There is lots happening in and around the Leighton Dillman Park these days and this post should get you caught up to speed.
Accessible Gardens
We are pleased to announce the completion of 5 new barrier-free, accessible garden beds in our community garden area. These plots will enable seniors and disabled persons to enjoy the simple pleasure of getting outside and staying active through gardening. Gardening is known to have many benefits for overall physical and mental health such as improving mobility and flexibility as well as reducing stress levels and allowing the person to relax.
We could not have accomplished this project without the grant from the Dartmouth Community Health Board that paid for the timber and supplies. We were also extremely fortunate to have Sean Murray from Work of Artz and Mick Doran‘s team from Kildare Construction donate their expertise to help design and construct the new gardens. Sean, Mick, and the team showed up on a Saturday at 9:00 AM and worked straight through to 6:30 PM to complete the project in time for planting season. They even donated some additional supplies that were required.
Rebuild, Grand Re-opening & AGM
As we announced last summer, we were the fortunate recipients of a $25,000 grant from TD Friends of the Environment Foundation. These funds allowed us to complete the rebuilding of the Park Avenue Community Oven through a series of community cob-building workshops. It will also allow us to expand our urban orchard with the planting of new trees and bushes happening in the Spring and Fall of 2016.
With the rebuild now complete, we are excited to have our soft opening scheduled for Saturday, June 4th and our Grand Re-opening and AGM slated for Saturday, June 25th. As always, the oven will be open every Saturday at noon starting with our soft opening. We also would like to extend an invite to any interested members of our community to attend our AGM which will be held onsite at the Park Avenue Community Oven from 10:30 AM-12:00 PM following by our Grand Re-opening at noon. Bring food to cook!
Volunteering
Our volunteers are amazing! They help bring the Dartmouth Common to life by enabling our unique venue to be utilized by thousands of visitors each year. Last year alone, we hosted 39 event bookings and 26 Open Ovens, with this year promising to be even busier.
For persons looking to get involved in one of the most happening community development projects in the province, now is the time! We are hosting a volunteer orientation and training session on Sunday, June 5th from 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM at the park oven. For more information and to RSVP, please email Owen at paco@dartmouth-oven.com.
Well, that’s the story, folks. Glad we could get together.