The Rotary Club of Georgetown in collaboration with Rotary District 7030, has launched its Shade House Vegetable Garden & Mini Fruit Farm at the Cheshire Home for the disabled, Mahaica, East Coast Demerara.
The project was launched on Saturday to coincide with Word Environment Day 2021 under the theme “Ecosystem Restoration”. The funds for this project were sourced through fund-raising activities of the club, together with a District Grant, the Rotary Club said in a release. There were also donations of cash and items from several friends of the club as well as Camex Restaurants Inc. It also expressed gratitude to all who supported the initiative and contributed to the cause.
The project focuses on economic/community development and health which will serve the Cheshire Home, situated at Unity Village, Mahaica. According to a release, a shade house has been erected and contains a vegetable garden and external raised beds to serve as a mini fruit farm. This is in an effort to reduce the “food bill” of the home, and to encourage the residents to have healthy eating habits.
“The idea is for the children/ residents to experience and appreciate vegetables and fruits from the ‘seed to the table’ – they can be the “Ambassadors of Eating Healthy,” the Club explained. And further, the plan is to introduce and support this type of self-sufficiency to the surrounding communities.
The project commenced on February 7, and residents were engaged in a planting exercise with the objective being that they get to experience the “miracle” of growing plants – planting a seed or a seedling and seeing it evolve. Since the initial project launch, Rotarians have made several trips to the home to clear the land, supervise the construction of the shade house and to plant the first set of leafy vegetables and fruit trees. A drip irrigation system was also installed to simplify plant maintenance and ensure sustainability of the project.
The Club plans to have a phase 2 to this project as it would like to expose the kitchen staff to some new techniques in cooking and share healthy recipes utilising some of the produce from the garden. Garden tools and other items to be used to maintain the garden were also donated to the Home.
The home for children and adults with disabilities was built in 1972 and is registered as a non-governmental organisation. It is supported by the Government of Guyana, private individuals and many other organisations, including the Rotary Club. The mission of the Cheshire Home is “To provide the care, ensure general well-being and rehabilitation of people with physical, mental or learning disability,” and it is manned by a committee of volunteers. Twenty-eight residents between the ages of 9 to 57 years and 8 care givers currently occupy the home. A few of the residents would be able to learn some agriculture science through this project, especially in the area of composting as all fruit skins and vegetable scraps will converted into organic fertiliser.
