CityView Magazine

54 | May/June 2015 activities operated by the center, the garden- ing program teaches hands-on agricultural skills to young boys, ages eight to 16. Wine- barger has been involved with the program for a few years, but this year he is taking over as lead. While teaching preschool children at his church, Winebarger noticed that many of the children had never seen an actual pear out- side of the standard-issue fruit cups. When faced with the actual fruit, they had no idea what it was. "Most coaches know their kids aren't go- ing to play professionally. Here, I know most of the boys won't become master gardeners or use these skills to make a living," Winebarger said, "but there's something about taking a project from start to finish. ey love the experience of planting some- thing, watching it grow and pulling it up." While gardening inevi- tably teaches important life skills—from manag- ing time commitments to carrying out a plan— it's also good, plain fun. ere's something hopeful about seeing a group of young boys outdoors, unplugged from electronic entertainment. "It's not about the gardening," Winebarger said. "It's about the boys." Great Oak holds three garden plots. In addition to planting and tending each indi- vidual garden, the boys help clear and clean the common spaces. ey mow and weed the walkways and collect branches and debris throughout the five-acre parcel. Wheelbar- rows and tillers in hand, they assist some of the older gardeners with the manual labor involved in managing a plot. The Little Garden That Could Watching the younger generation cultivate gardens is one of the most satisfying experi- ences for Candace Williams, whose tireless efforts saw the garden from an idea to reality. While reading the morning paper, Wil- liams was struck by two words—vacant lots. ose words had a special meaning to Wil- liams, who had been part of a community movement in Boston's South End twenty-five years prior. In an instant, she knew she was being called to translate that experience into a community garden for the Old Wilmington "It's not about the gardening. It's about the boys." Mitchell McCoy Great Oak Youth Photo by Candace Williams

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