Community garden meeting tonight
From an email from Friends of Lords Park Farm Zoo:
We are having a planning meeting on Wednesday, August 12th at 7:00 PM at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Elgin, 39W830 West Highland Avenue, Elgin 60123. That’s about 3 miles west of Randall Road on Highland. Please come. Come at about 6:30 if you want to see a demonstration of how to germinate the seeds that we will be using for our first planting at our all volunteer date - August 22nd, 9:00 am - 12:00 pm at Lords Park Farm Zoo.
The purpose of the meeting will be to begin to put together an organization to make this garden happen. Our goal is to produce vegetables for local food pantries in 2009 and beyond. The “Friends of Lords Park Farm Zoo” is also working with volunteers to maintain the zoo property and keep the gates open in 2010 and beyond for all of Elgin to enjoy the animals, nature and our community garden project there.
Please let us know if you can attend tonight or our kick-off volunteer day on August 22nd. Feel free to forward this message to friends, organizations and families that can benefit. And visit our Blog for updates on the Community Garden Project, our Sustainable Living education projects, and how we are working to save the resident Bison, Elk, Deer and farm animals at Lords Park Farm Zoo. http://lordsparkzoo.wordpress.com
Laurie Faith Gibson-Aiello
Friends of Lords Park Farm Zoo
I will definitely try to make it on August 22nd. I’m very excited about a community garden in Elgin!
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What happened to keeping the zoo open? I’m all for keeping the zoo open. I don’t have much interest in becoming a farmer and turning Lords Park into a farm to grow vegetables for the designated deserving poor, whoever they might be as yet to be determined.
And speaking of farms, on your way to your meeting you’ll pass a farm with sheep and llamas and peacocks and chickens but no vegetables! It is a wacky world - farms are becoming zoos and parks are becoming farms. All in the name of sustainable living!!!!!
You know why I let Kleins grow my vegetables? Because Kleins can grow vegetables cheaper than I can on the assumption my time, effort, and money have value.
P.S. Your sustainable living growing vegatbles for the poor experiment has been extensively tested in the former USSR, China and N Korea with result being massive famine, starvation, and death. I don’t like this cliche but maybe in your case it is apt: those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it.
Paul, you’re right that it’s not efficient. But for me at least the point is not efficiency. It’s about giving people the opportunity to enjoy the pleasure of gardening. It’s a recreational activity.
I enjoy gardening and I hope that people who do not have their own backyards or backyards that are too shady get a chance to enjoy the simple pleasure of growing tomatoes!
No where did I see your objective of “giving people the opportunity to enjoy the pleasure of gardening” as a reasoning for turning Lords Park into a vegetable farm. Nowhere! So are you saying that we are being sold this transformation of Lords Park on false pretenses (like Osama’s health plan)?
Run this mind boggle by me again, would you? Here is what I’ve gathered so far: The city can’t afford to run a small farm animal zoo. So instead will run a vegetable farm in its place so about 5 people can gain some pleasure trekking over to the farm to grow tomatoes because their backyards are too shady? Are you a comedian?
It seems like it is was pretty shady at the zoo. Are they going to cut down the trees, too? We can give the firewood to the poor when we deliver them the tomatoes!!! Yeah, yeah.
The elk and deer take up multiple acres. Get rid of them and the whole city can participate in an orgy of pleasure.
But the city does have 3/4 of a million dollars to “gift” (in the words of the mayor) to the seniors as a type of bribe or payoff. In terms of principle, ethics, and morality explain that payoff. It may (or may not!) be legal, but it sure isn’t right. Wonder how our new council members, who we pinned our hopes of principled city government, voted on that one. Did they sell their souls or was that already done the day the ran for the position?
As this is organized by volunteers, I don’t think the city will be spending any money. Perhaps just a token amount. But causes like this build social capital within the community and are worth supporting even if they cost some money. I can’t address all your questions because I’m not involved in organizing this, though I would like to volunteer some physical labor when they get down to that.
“causes like this build social capital ”
At least you admit you are a socialist.
>>P.S. Your sustainable living growing vegatbles for the poor experiment has been extensively tested in the former USSR, China and N Korea with result being massive famine, starvation, and death. I don’t like this cliche but maybe in your case it is apt: those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it.<<
I’m quite certain that socialism and social capital are two unrelated concepts.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_capital
Social capital relates to a civil society. It’s in part because I believe socialism undermines civil society that I am more or less a political conservative.
“I’m quite certain that socialism and social capital are two unrelated concepts.”
I’m absolutely certain you are 100% wrong. Proof: You are advocating for a communal farm to be established in Lords Park (public property) for the purpose of building “social capital”, Comrade.
Yet you can’t define social capital. See Karl Marx’s Communist Manifesto for definition.
P.S. Seems I was slightly ahead of the times just following the natural course of socialism when I said get rid of the elk and deer too: >>Bye-bye bison?
City planning to ship off buffalo and other remaining animals at Lords Park<< http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/couriernews/news/1718022,Elgin-Bye-bye-bison_el081609.article
Just think of the commune you can have with that acreage! And it is already fenced to keep the undeserving poor from stealing the deserving poor’s communal produce.
Hi!
I will be attending the meeting on the 22nd. !! I would also like to volunteer more time, plants, etc. before then. I missed the meeting on the 12th. Please call me at 312-259-1167 if I can be of any service. If not, I look forward to seeing everyone at the first planting!
Curt
Socialism - bleh… We planted Lettuce and Broccoli on August 22nd or harvest by Mid-October to teach the Crisis Center folks how to prepare and cook… We’re just stepping in and using a 40 x 50 ft piece of land to lend for ‘living skills’ education with and locally grown produce to boot!