The Eco Garden in Cornwall, Ontario, has become a beacon ofsustainable agriculture. Managed by local volunteers and supported by the City of Cornwall and various organizations, the garden provides residents with a space to grow their own vegetables, herbs, and flowers.
The Agape Centre, Cornwall’s largest food bank and soup kitchen, hosted an “open garden” event at the Eco Garden’s Race Street location. The event featured a fundraising barbecue to support thegarden’s ongoing efforts. “It’s open to the community to connect, walk around this beautiful space, and see everyone’s gardens,” said Lisa Duprau, Executive Director at the Agape Centre. “We’re raising money specifically for the garden—not for the Agape Centre, just for the garden.”
Duprau highlighted the garden’s role in providing fresh produce for the Agape Centre’s kitchen and food bank. “We grow tomatoes,cucumbers, squash, lettuce, carrots, and onions, using them in soups and salads and distributing them through the food bank,” she explained. Other gardeners here also donate to the Agape Centre from their plots.”
Gilles Leger, the coordinator of the Eco Gardens, emphasized the collective effort behind the garden’s success. “Well, I’m involved inthe process that helps the community. We have a garden here that’s 20 by 100 feet, and everything that’s produced here is brought to Agape for lunch and dinner. We supply them with vegetables and as much as we can. The people who work in the garden here are all volunteers. They help with planting, maintaining, and harvesting the garden, so it’s all for the soup kitchen. Whatever we grow here goes to the soup kitchen.”
Leger also highlighted the generosity of the individual gardeners. “There are also individual lots that we rent to people, and whatever they plant is theirs to take home. But many of the gardeners, whenthey see me picking for Agape, will say, ‘Oh, I’ve got enough lettuce’ or ‘I’ve got enough tomatoes, so can I give you some to take to Agape?’ It’s really nice to see that,” he concluded.
