Gardens and Ribbons: Steps to Recovery

by Amy Kolb Noyes

MORRISVILLE - Dignitaries, clients and caseworkers were among those who
enjoyed music, barbecue and the ground breaking of Lamoille County
Mental Health's Garden Project Monday evening, May 24. Lieutenant
Governor Brian Dubie, Secretary of Human Services Charles Smith,
Commissioner of Developmental and Mental Health Susan Besio and Senator
Susan Bartlett were among the honored guests who planted seedlings in
the newly unveiled recovery garden.
The recovery garden is a series of raised beds behind Lamoille County
Mental Health's 2020 Clubhouse on Brooklyn Street in Morrisville. A
second garden is under construction at Copley House, on Washington
Highway. The gardens are the brainchild of LCMH Recovery Specialist
Elena Burt, who said the gardens are an all-encompassing recovery
project. They are therapeutic, symbolic, and will serve to fulfill both
the physical and emotional needs of LCMH consumers. The raised beds are
also wheelchair accessible.
Burt explained recovering from mental illness involves, in part,
focusing on wellness, nutrition and exercise. She said the gardens will
provide healthy foods to be used in meals served at the clubhouse. They
will also be donating part of the harvest to the local food shelves. The
gardens will also serve as a serene place for LCMH consumers to enjoy.
Burt noted they attempted to grow a clubhouse garden last year, but the
project turned out to be too big an effort to maintain. That first
garden came about through the efforts of LCMH staff member William Baker.
Burt commented, "That garden, I feel, was the inspiration for the group
to recognize the great differences that could be made to the meals and
the food shelf with a new garden that is more accessible to all."
This spring, Burt dedicated her efforts to finding donors to contribute
to a new garden. She solicited donations of lumber, topsoil, plants,
labor and more. Lamoille County Court Diversion provided labor to build
the gardens, and has committed to maintaining them throughout the
summer. Donations of lumber, plants and other garden supplies came from
businesses throughout Lamoille County. Burt said she is still working to
secure additional donations of lumber and plants.
Two focal points of the garden include an arbor announcing "RECOVERY
GARDEN," and a plot of yellow and orange marigolds, planted in the shape
of a looped ribbon.
Each visitor and participant at the open house and ground breaking was
also pinned with a yellow and orange Recovery Ribbon. The ribbon project
is an ongoing effort at LCMH which organizers hope to take nationwide.
The ribbon idea came from Michele Sullivan-DuBois, Jean New and Barbara
Farnham. Speaking to the crowd, Sullivan-DuBois noted the recovery
ribbon effort has been a consumer/client driven effort to de-stigmatize
mental illness.
"It's given us consumers a voice," said Sullivan-DuBois, "a chance to
speak up on behalf of ourselves."
Sullivan-DuBois pinned oversized ribbons on each of the honored guests.
Lt. Governor Dubie said he is impressed with the ribbon project's
far-reaching vision as stated in its mission statement, "To have a
yellow and orange ribbon to symbolize recovery and de-stigmatize mental
illness world wide."