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Reaping the Fruit of Their Labour

Friendship House  July 28 2010

Friendship House in Brantford, Ontario certainly can't be accused of hiding their light under a bushel.  Anyone travelling past 452 Grey Street in Brantford will know at once that there is something exciting happening there. 

For years Friendship House wore the appearance of an industrial factory, set back from the road, perfectly at home in a commercial subdivision. But now there is activity everywhere - life that shows. There are picnic tables under the trees for the lunchtime use of nearby office workers, and the large field beside the office/church complex is a jungle patchwork of luxuriant gardens.  Vines and flowers, and every sort of vegetable fill each garden plot to overflowing.   And there are gardeners everywhere. Neighbours from the community - mostly parents with their children - enjoying time spent together in the park-like setting.  

The dramatic and very visible success of these "Victory Gardens" has had a cheering catalytic effect upon the many ministries of Friendship House and especially upon the outlook of the staff and volunteers. The community and family friendships that are being grown in the field are only one expression of the much larger network of  imaginative, outward looking community engagement that makes up the ministry of Friendship House, but it is such a visible and successful expression of that ministry, it has coloured all the rest with a spirit of hope and Joy.  Director Carol Owen, says that she is thrilled with the changes that have taken place since the gardening project began. "Somehow, everything seems to be coming together now - we are reaping the fruit of our labour."