One goal of the Madison Home Garden Project is to teach them the value of a high grain, high protein diet. The program emphasizes that gardens are a source of healthy, affordable vegetables, and the participants can learn where the food they eat comes from. The program also helps foster a sense of sharing, knowledge of gardening, and awareness of personal abilities and limitations, added project director Audrey Lesondak. This project is aimed at letting individuals with developmental disabilities experience the growing of their own flowers and vegetables. The Madison Home Garden Project also provides seeds and compost, much of which is donated by area businesses.
Volunteers plant the seeds, and many come back and visit the gardeners from time to time.
Since its inception, Madison Home Garden Project volunteers have built approximately 35 garden beds that have served more than 150 people. According to Lesondak, in follow-up surveys, more than half the gardeners reported that they continued to use their garden after the first year and continued to request seeds, materials and assistance. It's so heartwarming. It's really a lovely experience. Marie and the volunteers who built her garden.