Starting Off 2016 with Energy & Enthusiasm at CCGA Conference
Imagine the sight as 250 community gardeners from all over Chicago gathered at the South Shore Cultural Center on March 5th for the 4th CCGA Spring Conference. Inside the inspiring venue where we convened once again to see our friends from down the block or on the other side of the city and make new connections to grow our gardens you could practically feel the love and brotherhood in the air. Lots of hugs were exchanged among old friends. Our featured speaker, Eliza Fournier from the Chicago Botanic Garden eloquently put into words so much of what community gardening means to all of us. Still echoing in our minds is the Peace Pledge by Mahatma Gandhi that she asked us to recite along with her:
I pledge allegiances to the Earth
And to all things that it nourishes
All growing things
All species of animals
And all races of people
I promise to protect all life in our planet
To live in harmony with nature
And to share our resources justly
So that all people can live in dignity
In good health and in Peace
The eight packed workshops organized by the CCGA Education Team were led by talented and experienced speakers and you can view the workshop listing here. Gardeners learned how to build a compost bin that meets the requirements of the new Chicago compost ordinance and ‘build’ healthy soil and how to ‘kick start’ as well as ‘refresh’ their gardens and how to ‘get going’ with their veggies. You can view photos of the conference here.
The CCGA Resource Team spent many weeks planting and maintaining the plants used to create the spectacular table centerpieces that someone at each table took home! Donations were also solicited for a huge stack of garden related raffle items and most attendees took home some garden-swag along with an abundance of seeds for their gardens. During a relaxing and bountiful lunch catered by Wishbone Restaurant, gardeners were able to stop by the tables of our 16 exhibitors offering opportunities, advice and products.
The months of hard work by dedicated CCGA members and some of our partner organizations made all of the above possible. The CCGA is an all-volunteer gardener collective organized into 4 working groups that all had a hand in programming and logistics for the Conference.
And of course we want to give a big thanks to our partner organizations The Chicago Park District, U of I Cooperative Extension and NeighborSpace as well as all the volunteers who worked the conference and contributed their time, energy and ideas. Very special thanks go out to three people who took the lead this year for the conference logistical planning: Robin Cline at NeighborSpace, Kristin Brock at the Chicago Park District and LaVerne Morris from CCGA!
Thank you all for helping us start the 2016 growing season off with energy and enthusiasm!