When you plant a seed in spring, the sun’s warmth begins to heat the air and soil. The sprout pushes through and reaches skyward fleshing out in leaves and flowers becoming a mature healthy plant. The plant becomes a part of a flower bed which then expands to a garden filling our eyes and senses with a sense of wonder and beauty. From a single seed, we created a gathering place of solace, serenity and friendship. This garden welcomes the lonely, the lively and lets them linger, creating a special community of joy.
Working the soil with your hands fills your soul with joy; the feel of the earth, the smell of the soil and the warmth of the sun work together to create a sense of accomplishment. Hard work, toil and sweat are an important part of creating anything worthwhile. The physical effort acts as a catalyst to the eventual sense of wonder that is shared by all. This activity doesn’t work in isolation. A beautiful garden is a shared thing. When many likeminded individuals come together, they create a larger more diverse garden, bursting with color, aromas and textures that fill the senses with pleasure. This pleasure is shared not just by the engineers of the garden but by every living thing that comes in the vicinity of the garden.
Great communities are like the garden and volunteers are the gardeners of diversity. Take the seed of an idea and have a conversation, the conversation then grows into a plan, and the plan becomes an action that eventually creates something of substance. Volunteers communicating and working together create community. Great communities, like the flower garden, flourish in diversity, meeting the needs of the lonely, the lively, the young and the old, and providing a place to linger and achieve a sense of belonging with other people.
Volunteers are the most powerful force in this community. The volunteer brings passion, energy, and vision to whatever they do and creates a positive impact wherever they go. Mountains can be moved with the power of good volunteers, and TGCA is the perfect example of the power of the volunteer. Thank you to our great volunteers. TGCA exists and will continue to do so because you, like the gardener, envision a beautiful place that welcomes all and then create it.
– Leslie Degagne, TGCA President
