UNews - local food banks

Rotaract curling bonspiel on Saturday

trevor.kenney — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 17:08:40 +0000

As part of World Rotaract Week, the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Rotaract Club will be holding its first curling bonspiel in support of the Lethbridge & Interfaith Food Banks as well as the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Student Food Bank.

Rotaract invites the community to join them on Saturday, Mar. 13 at the Lethbridge Curling Club from 3 to 5 p.m. for a family-friendly afternoon of curling and fellowship.

"This isn't going to be a competitive event," says Rotaract vice-president administration, Samantha Gilbert. "It's just a chance for Rotaract, Rotary and community members to spend a fun afternoon together in support of local food banks."

Although this is Rotaract's first bonspiel this is not their first World Rotaract Week event. Every year Rotaract clubs from around the world commemorate the charter of the first Rotaract Club in North Carolina in 1968. Past World Rotaract Week projects have included hosting a pancake breakfast at the YWCA and picking up garbage around the U of L campus.

"We're excited to be supporting the local food banks this year, including the Student Food Bank at the U of L," says Gilbert. "Local Rotary clubs are also supporting them this month as part of Food Bank Month and we wanted to do our part."

Community members of all ages are encouraged to register their team of four by contacting rotaract@uleth.ca by Friday, Mar. 12 to register. Cost is $10/person to register, along with a non-perishable food item donation. Olympic theme costumes are encouraged, with prizes for the best costumes.

The U of L Rotaract Club is a not-for-profit service club that is part of the Rotary International.

With over 7,000 Rotaract clubs in 163 countries worldwide, the U of L Rotaract Club fundraises, volunteers and most importantly raises awareness for both local and international need.

For more information, contact Samantha Gilbert (403-715-4970).

Campus garden reaps harvest

trevor.kenney — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 22:03:15 +0000

Its roots may be humble but the legacy of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge's first campus garden is truly grand.

An initiative with community in mind, the garden enjoyed its first harvest this fall. There should be many more to come.

"For a first year, I think we did really well," Stephen McGlenn, president of the Campus Roots Garden Cooperative, says. "We weren't expecting an incredibly huge garden because the first year takes a lot of work and a lot of co-ordinating of volunteers. It was challenging at times but in the end, everyone felt really good about it, especially the community building aspects of what making a garden is all about."

Located near the Parkway Service Complex, the fenced facility consisted of nine private plots (each 144 square feet) and a large communal plot. McGlenn estimates some 35 people were directly involved in renting and planting the plots but at any given time, with the involvement of family members, more than 60 people contributed to the garden's success.

Challenges were what you'd expect from a typical garden, including the co-ordination of volunteer weeding efforts. One unique difficulty was a lack of water available to the gardeners due to construction activities on campus.

"Water conservation was a huge challenge. With the area construction, our water was turned off for the better part of three weeks, and it forced us how to learn to use water effectively," says McGlenn, a fourth-year Native American Studies major.

Learning, it would turn out, proved to be a common theme throughout the summer.

"The cross-generational learning from the veteran gardeners, their experience and their love of gardening, really translated to the younger students who maybe didn't have that knowledge but really wanted to learn," says McGlenn. "That sharing of knowledge really got people excited about the project."

Students, staff, faculty and extended family members all had a hand in maintaining the garden and in the end, reaped benefits from its harvest. All extra produce was earmarked for local food banks.

Plans for next year's garden include planting specific plots for different campus departments.

"We're going to try and have a plot specifically for the daycare, one for the Native Studies Department and so on so that departments can hold events using food that they've grown on campus," says McGlenn.

It doesn't stop there, as the group submitted a proposal to the City of Lethbridge's Plan Your City project about incorporating the community garden concept into the city plan.

"Our proposal talked about how beneficial these gardens are, not only for healthy eating, community building and active living, but also for lessening our dependence on fossil fuels and promoting sustainable technologies."

GET THE FACTS

• The garden featured a variety of vegetables, including potatoes, peas, beans, carrots, varieties of lettuce and selected herbs.

• The communal plot included companion plants like marigolds to attract certain predators that would aid in the control of pests.

• Student Kyle Robinson initiated the community garden project before McGlenn took over. Following his graduation in Apr. 2010, a new executive will be created. "For me, it's almost been the climax of my undergraduate degree. Putting something together and having something tangible that I can point to in the future and say, "We put that together," is pretty fulfilling," says McGlenn.

Campus garden reaps harvest

trevor.kenney — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 21:47:58 +0000

Its roots may be humble but the legacy of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge's first campus garden is truly grand.

An initiative with community in mind, the garden enjoyed its first harvest this fall. There should be many more to come.

Learning, it would turn out, proved to be a common theme throughout the summer.

Students, staff, faculty and extended family members all had a hand in maintaining the garden and in the end, reaped benefits from its harvest. All extra produce was earmarked for local food banks.

Plans for next year's garden include planting specific plots for different campus departments.

It doesn't stop there, as the group submitted a proposal to the City of Lethbridge's Plan Your City project about incorporating the community garden concept into the city plan.

GET THE FACTS

• The garden featured a variety of vegetables, including potatoes, peas, beans, carrots, varieties of lettuce and selected herbs.

• The communal plot included companion plants like marigolds to attract certain predators that would aid in the control of pests.

UNews - local food banks

Rotaract curling bonspiel on Saturday

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Campus garden reaps harvest

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Campus garden reaps harvest

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