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Residents create a beautiful, social garden

July 23rd, 2019

The first residents’ garden at Points West Living Lac La Biche reflects generations of gardening knowledge and heart. When Recreation Therapist, Anoop Jose first considered how to use the raised beds in the courtyard, he had to admit, he was in over his head. Fortunately, residents came to his aid.

Learning the science of gardening

“When I planned to make a garden for our residents, I never had any idea about what to do or where to start,” says Anoop. “However, I discussed it with residents and they were super interested to go with it. From the beginning they were with me and shared their valuable experiences, and taught me about the science of gardening.”

As a Recreation Therapist, Anoop is sold on the benefits gardening can have on a person’s physical, mental, social, emotional, and cognitive health. “It is helpful in tackling the ‘three plagues’ of loneliness, helplessness and boredom,” he says. “In addition, this experience provides a chance for the residents to go back to their past and recreate it.”

The perfect place

“Our garden is the perfect place for the residents to spend their time in a creative way and they always come up with great ideas to make our garden more beautiful,” Anoop says. “Nowadays, we conduct most of our recreational activities in our garden, and that helps our residents explore the beauty of nature and socialize with others.”

Photo: “Memory care residents made some bird houses and we placed them in our garden to attract cavity-nesting birds,” says Anoop Jose.

More photos at Flickr: Residents create a beautiful, social garden