\u201cWe also have a deep appreciation for agriculture. Living in an urban environment, we felt that community gardening would be a meaningful way to introduce participants to the growing process and foster a stronger connection to the natural world. We recognized that experiencing the entire growing cycle \u2013 from planting and nurturing to harvesting \u2013 would provide participants with a genuine sense of accomplishment and pride.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIn addition,\u201d she said, \u201cwe recognized that our adult inclusion programs serve a broad age range. This initiative was designed to give our young adults the opportunity to connect and build friendships with peers who are closer to their own age and at a similar stage of life.\u201d<\/p>\n It was developed with a clear vision, she said: \u201cto engage participants in gardening and outdoor activities while encouraging connections with one another, with the facilitator and with nature itself. Once we had that vision clear, we began searching for the right location to bring it to life.\u201d<\/p>\n The JCC initially approached Congregation Beth Israel, said Maggie Wilson, coordinator of the Vancouver Jewish Community Garden, which was established in 2020 by Vancouver Talmud Torah, Beth Israel and JFS, and which is situated alongside the synagogue building and behind the school. However, the congregation realized the program would be a better fit for a partnership between the JCC and JFS, she said.<\/p>\n Wilson and Carol Hopkins, director of food security at JFS, explained in an email that \u201cthe JCC coordinates the program, managing participant recruitment, registration and the program facilitator\u201d and, through its partnership with JFS, the program takes place in the garden.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cAs part of this collaboration, JFS will lead specialized food literacy programming with the participants,\u201d they said. \u201cThe participants have also been given the use of a bed to care for throughout the season. This allows them to experience the full cycle of gardening, from planting seeds and caring for growing plants to harvesting food they have grown themselves, all while building confidence, developing new skills and fostering a sense of ownership and connection to the space.<\/p>\n \u201cBy combining expertise in inclusive programming, a shared dedication to food literacy and a vibrant outdoor learning environment, this partnership between the JCC and JFS has created an experience that neither organization could have offered on its own.\u201d<\/p>\n Wilson provides professional guidance and ongoing support for the program, which is designed for young adults aged 18 to 25 with a wide range of support needs. Barak Gonen said the initiative has allowed the JCC \u201cto engage new participants who had not previously taken part in our inclusion programs.\u201d<\/p>\n For the initiative, the JCC recruited Ran Keren, an experienced facilitator, who, Barak Gonen said, \u201chas done an exceptional job leading the gardening activities while also creating engaging outdoor arts, crafts and nature-based experiences that foster learning, bonding and enjoyment.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe started our program this spring with learning about the various herbs, veggies, fruits and greens that grow in the beautiful Jewish Community Garden,\u201d said Keren. \u201cEvery meeting, we do some work in the garden and connect with the plants in some way; making herbal tea from the garden herbs, printing T-shirts with the garden flowers, putting together birdhouses and bug hotels, and nurturing our own little plot of veggies. There is something dynamic in gardening work, as it depends on the weather and the ever-changing crop growth and cycles, but the most important part in our work and activities is to create space in which we get to know one another, and feel safe and welcome to share thoughts, experiences and feelings. To borrow from [noted Indigenous botanist] Robin Kimmerer, \u2018A garden is a nursery for nurturing connection.\u2019 My main goal, and hope is that our program is shaping to be such a space.\u201d<\/p>\n Growing Together is a seasonal initiative, so it will continue for as long as the weather conditions allow. \u201cWe hope to extend it through the current growing season and are planning to offer it again next spring, giving participants the opportunity to reconnect with nature and continue building on the relationships and skills developed through the program,\u201d Barak Gonen said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThere is still space for new participants to join the current program cycle,\u201d she added, \u201cand we welcome anyone interested in taking part.\u201d<\/p>\n For more information, contact Barak Gonen at shiri@jccgv.bc.ca<\/a>. For more about the garden, go to jewishcommunitygarden.ca<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Growing Together \u2013 a garden program for young adults with varying abilities, run by the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver and Jewish Family Services \u2013 is facilitated by Ran Keren. (photo from JCC) This spring, the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver launched Growing Together, a garden program for young adults with varying abilities, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":49393,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[3076,6835,24966,2777,1182,7702,23307,24967,23797,22301],"class_list":["post-49391","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local","tag-education","tag-gardening","tag-growing-together","tag-inclusion","tag-jewish-community-centre-of-greater-vancouver","tag-jewish-family-services","tag-maggie-wilson","tag-ran-keren","tag-shiri-barak-gonen","tag-vancouver-jewish-community-garden"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49391","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49391"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49391\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49393"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49391"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49391"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49391"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"photo](\"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/jul-24-Community.24.Growing-Together-2_20260514.jpg\")
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