By Katie Patrick
It is the vision of Catholic Social Services of Southern Nebraska (CSS) to inspire hope and love in every encounter, and that includes serving every client who comes to us in need with dignity and respect. For nearly 100 years, CSS has been giving food to those in need, helping families with rent and utilities, welcoming refugees and immigrants, sheltering women and children fleeing domestic violence, and providing love and support to women in crisis pregnancies – and we will continue to do so.
This May, in lieu of Give to Lincoln Day, CSS is focused on raising funds for four very important initiatives, including the Lincoln Community Garden, the Lincoln Food Market, two recently purchased maternity and refugee transition homes, and our sustainability project, which includes launching our Gift & Thrift Online Shop, a benefit to all thrift stores and the entire area that we serve across southern Nebraska. (I can’t wait to tell you more!)
Planted in late spring 2023, the CSS Lincoln Community Garden will grow fresh produce for our clients, provide a beautiful and beneficial “green space” in Lincoln’s Telegraph District, and offer businesses, organizations, and families unique opportunities to collaborate with us. It sits at the edge of our property at 2241 ‘O’ St. in Lincoln, overlooking the Antelope Valley waterway and while we have yet to yield any veggies, it has already proved to be a fruitful source of community.
Last November, as I shared in a previous article, two groups in Lincoln, including 10 employees from Clark and Enersen and several members of the Lincoln chapter of the Ancient Order of Hibernians built our cedar garden beds. Clark and Enersen also donated and built a shed that day. A few months later, during spring break, a dozen students from Newman University in Wichita, Kan., came and installed our black iron fence.
We have staff and dedicated volunteers, who have shoveled and filled all of our garden beds with 50/50 compost, and are maintaining the area around the beds. We’re also partnering with Community Crops and Nebraska Extension to acquire the plants and decide when and where they should be planted. Fresh connections and nutritious care are the crops we’re most excited to sow!
A CSS Food Market client said, “When I come for food, I am always so happy when I can take home fresh produce for my family. It makes a big difference in my life to be able to eat healthy and have a good diet.”
We’re eager for our clients and community to reap all of our garden’s bounty. You can join us this spring or summer by visiting our website at www.csshope.org to complete a volunteer application, or by calling our Community Engagement Coordinator, Rachel Tvrdy, at (402) 327.6245.
To make a donation toward our Community Garden, visit www.csshope.org/donate and make your tax-deductible gift today! Thank you and may God bless you!
