Oil company retirees harvesting hope
At the Chevron retirees country garden, the scarecrows are actually for the moose who have a taste for beet greens.
Fortunately, they don’t seem to like the beetroots, or so far the onions, potatoes, zucchini, or carrots, all of which are destined for the Calgary Food Bank.
The garden is maintained by volunteers from the Chevron Retirees Club, which last year harvested over 4,000 kilograms of food from the land north of Cochrane. Despite this year’s drought conditions, they are optimistic they’ll reap the same bounty this year.
“It's terrific to help people out that need a little help getting going, whatever their situation is,” said Ted Spearing of the Chevron Retirees Club. “If we can grow the veggies that help them do that, help them and their families be well-fed, and able to get on with life, that's wonderful.”
The food bank provides the seeds to the group which plants, maintains, and harvests the crops.
“We always get feedback from clients that they'll say, Wow, I didn't expect that I would get carrots that still had dirt on them from someone's garden yesterday," said Calgary Food Bank spokesperson Shawna Ogston. "The idea that we're growing such fresh produce just for them to say we care about your resiliency - they don't just see it as ‘Oh, great. I've got carrots.’ It’s (more) like ‘Wow! Somebody really cares’.”
One of the fruits of the garden run by a group of volunteer retirees
The land for the garden was donated by a homeowner, about 20 minutes north of Cochrane, three years ago. In the first year, the club was able to clear the land and break ground, but it wasn’t until 2020 that they were able to harvest a crop.
There was nowhere for them to store their tools and supplies, until Wednesday when a team from the construction manufacturer ZS2 technologies held a building bee to erect a shed for the group.
Using the company’s proprietary magnesium oxide sulfate cement paneling, they built what might be the most fireproof, weatherproof, and best-insulated shed on the prairies.
“The shed that we are building for the community garden is probably the Cadillac, or Mercedes of all sheds” said ZS2 CEO Scott Jenkins “I's a great demonstration of how quickly we can build this entire shed. It will be done in one day. It's an opportunity for us, also, to support such a worthy organization like the food bank.”
The garden is maintained by volunteers from the Chevron Retirees Club, which last year harvested over 4,000 kilograms of food from the land north of Cochrane. Despite this year’s drought conditions, they are optimistic they’ll reap the same bounty this year.
The Chevron retirees will be conducting a preliminary ‘test harvest’ this week to judge the state of the crop. They expect to harvest the full garden in mid-September, and while they expect to reap tonnes of food for the food bank, Ogston says even if you have just a row or two in your garden at home the food bank would be excited to see it wind up in one of their hampers.
“Donating to the food bank, if you've got a row in your backyard of extra potatoes, or who knows what this growing season is super easy,“said Ogston “Remember these are perishable items, so we've got to get them into hampers right away. If you're pulling out those carrots on a Sunday with your children, you could get those into hampers Monday afternoon.”
Ogston advises to check the food bank's website for the drop off locations and times.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'A beautiful soul': Funeral held for baby boy killed in wrong-way crash on Highway 401
A funeral was held on Wednesday for a three-month-old boy who died after being involved in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 in Whitby last week.
'Sophisticated' cyberattacks detected on B.C. government networks, premier says
There has been a "sophisticated" cybersecurity breach detected on B.C. government networks, Premier David Eby confirmed Wednesday evening.
Police handcuff man trying to enter Drake's Toronto mansion
Toronto police say a man was taken into custody outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion Wednesday afternoon after he tried to gain access to the residence.
Biden says he will stop sending bombs and artillery shells to Israel if they launch major invasion of Rafah
U.S. President Joe Biden said for the first time Wednesday he would halt shipments of American weapons to Israel, which he acknowledged have been used to kill civilians in Gaza, if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders a major invasion of the city of Rafah.
Canucks claw out 5-4 comeback win over Oilers in Game 1
Dakota Joshua had a goal and two assists and the Vancouver Canucks scored three third-period goals to claw out a 5-4 comeback victory over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 1 of their second-round playoff series Wednesday.
Nijjar murder suspect says he had Canadian study permit in immigration firm's video
One of the Indian nationals accused of murdering British Columbia Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar says in a social media video that he received a Canadian study permit with the help of an Indian immigration consultancy.
Pfizer agrees to settle more than 10K lawsuits over Zantac cancer risk: Bloomberg News
Pfizer has agreed to settle more than 10,000 lawsuits about cancer risks related to the now discontinued heartburn drug Zantac, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the deal.
Quebec premier defends new museum on Quebecois nation after Indigenous criticism
Quebec Premier Francois Legault is defending his comments about a new history museum after he was accused by a prominent First Nations group of trying to erase their history.
U.S. presidential candidate RFK Jr. had a brain worm, has recovered, campaign says
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had a parasite in his brain more than a decade ago, but has fully recovered, his campaign said, after the New York Times reported about the ailment.