The Sunalta Community Garden

Since 2017, United Way of Calgary and Area (United Way) and the City of Calgary have been collaborating on the Community Hubs Initiative. Located in five key neighbourhoods in Calgary, Community Hubs is a place-based initiative offering support, connection and access to opportunities. One of those places is in Sunalta, where a community garden has been planting the seeds of fellowship and identity for all who gather there.

Connections are forged everywhere in our community—at the local hockey rink, outside children’s schools and in our local community associations.

Something special is happening in Sunalta, a vibrant and diverse inner city community, but also a community that exists as a food desert, with residents in the area needing to travel a significant distance to get to an affordable grocery store. Through United Way of Calgary and Area’s Community Hubs initiative, people in the inner city find support, connection and access to opportunities. One way they do this is by getting their hands dirty in the community garden.

“This is a collective garden where nobody owns a bed. Everybody owns the entire garden, and we meet every couple of weeks to garden for an hour and do whatever tasks are needed for that particular day,” says Janet Melrose, Calgary’s Cottage Gardener and the program’s leader.

It’s an activity that’s not readily available in inner-city communities like Sunalta and the community is embracing the chance to see what the garden will grow.

“Having a space like this is just awesome because it gives you the opportunity to grow your own food,” says Steve, a local participant. “But I think the biggest thing is for fellowship, for community.”

In many cases, it’s not just plants that are growing; the seeds of positive relationships are also taking root.

“I think it’s a great way to get to know other people in Calgary. I think it’s a great way to connect with people and develop friendships,” adds Teresa, another local community gardener. “I think it’s also critical to keeping families together — the connection with other people and having other people to talk to.”

It’s a sentiment echoed by Sunalta Community Association Program Manager Grace Donner.

“You have a task that makes you feel productive and worthwhile. And so, I think a lot of people find it to be a more accessible way to build connections and meet people who are already in the community,” she says.

Those relationships have become critical lifelines for people, easing their personal issues and giving them an outlet to deal with their challenges.

Greg’s story is one of personal loss. When his wife died, he found himself withdrawing from the daily life he used to enjoy. He credits the Sunalta Community Association and the gardening program with getting back on track.

“Just neighbours got together, had a chit chat, and I found out about all the other programs that the city or the association had in place, and it just grew from there,” he says. “I’ve signed up to a thousand different things over the last four or five years, including this one, the collective garden.”

“The best part relates to the people. As you can see, we’ve got quite a bounty growing here.”

In more ways than one.

Since the initiative launched in 2017, Community Hubs has engaged more than 453,161 individuals. Your support means thousands of people will be aided in creating the connections they need across Calgary. Make a difference today by supporting programs like this one through the Community Impact Fund at calgaryunitedway.org.