Like minded people who wanted to see their community be as healthy as possible, saw those dreams begin to come true when four years ago, they received a grant for a community garden at Barb Dye Park in Ulysses.
Today, that dream is a reality, thanks to the many volunteers who worked to make it happen.
Those going by Barb Dye Park can't miss an area just to the north and east. It's well taken care of and contains several plots with a variety of plants - it's the community garden.
"The community garden plots are full," said local resident Joyce Briggs in a recent communique with The Ulysses News. "Everyone has been busy with planting and watering and a little weed eating."
Plots are full - but there is still work to be done.
"The City still has plans to have cement (added) to the first plots for use by handicap people if needed for next year," Briggs explained. "They also will be putting up signs and providing a little shade and some benches for resting while people are watering."
According to Briggs, another addition to the garden came from Grant County Extension office.
"Grant County Extension planted trees on the south side of the garden," she said.
The community garden was started in 2019, when IMPACT Ulysses Inc., the local community health coalition, was selected to received the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas Pathways to a Healthy Kansas grant.
According to IMPACT Ulysses Executive Director, MargaretHermocillo Obholz in an earlier interview, "the whole purpose of the grant is to increase or create healthy opportunities in the community - basically to have active living, healthy eating, and commercial tobacco prevention - encouraging communities to designate community spaces as tobacco free zones."
Pathways to a Healthy Kansas provided the tools and resources needed to remove barriers and engage the community in August 2020, according to Obholz.
The area for the garden was selected based on input of various focus groups, availability of space, and a partner - the City of Ulysses - who would support the community garden over the next five years.
The Pathways Implementation Grant covered the cost of a water meter installation, fencing, raised beds, gravel, tools, concrete, pergola covered sitting areas, benches and trees, according to Obholz.
The community garden has 24 plots which were made available to residents to rent for a low fee with the requirement of a signed agreement to follow the garden guidelines and recommendations. Along with the land, the City of Ulysses provides the water needed for garden crops.
The park is designated tobacco and vape free, and the park is also managed through a partnership with Grant County Research and Extension.
Grant County Extension organizes the rental of the plots, provides some valuable training and hopes to eventually create a community orchard.
Why is the garden important?
“The community garden will beautify the park, provide increased accessibility to fresh produce, promote healthier lifestyle, provide an outlet to relieve stress, and increase wellness,” according to Obholz.
As a result of the Pathways grant, cost to the city is kept at a minimum.
In the United States, community gardens got their start in the 1890s during an economic recession. Detroit was the first city to start community gardens on vacant lots. Due to a significant amount of unemployment and hunger, these vacant lot gardens helped fill an essential need.
Following vacant lot gardens were school gardens. In urban settings, schools wanted to connect children to nature. Then, three significant events impacted US history. World War I in 1917, the Great Depression of the 1930s, and World War II in the 1940s. Gardens provided food security for millions of families. During WWII, it’s estimated that Victory Gardens provided 40 percent of all fresh vegetables.
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