On Tuesdays, you’ll typically find Lily volunteering at our rooftop garden at Castle Gardens. She may be pulling weeds, tying up vines or offering a helping hand during gardening workshops for Castle Gardens residents.  

Lily began volunteering at the garden in June, after completing a spring internship with Employment Services. At that time, Lily studied politics and planned to eventually pursue a career in policy. Instead, she discovered a passion for urban agriculture while volunteering at the garden and decided to reroute her initial path.

As an intern, Lily most enjoyed working with participants and learning more about Fortune’s impact on an individual level. As an assistant to the case managers and workshop facilitators, she was able to see the direct benefits that support in education and career building can provide. Paired with her experience at the garden, Lily has gained a deeper understanding of Fortune’s “one-stop shop” method and how this model can help justice-impacted individuals thrive. 

While volunteering at the garden, Lily often spends time with some of the building’s residents and their families. In October, Lily helped set up the fall harvest celebration, where Castle Gardens residents were invited to the roof and planted native flower seeds at a planting station in the garden. Similar events and workshops happen throughout the year and some of the residents assist in the garden more frequently as a part of the Sky Garden club.

“There is one participant named Barbara who comes every week, and there are other participants that come relatively frequently,” Lily said. “They bring their kids and we’ve made salves and balms from beeswax and shea butter. And then we use the lavender that we grow, and mint, chamomile, echinacea, and we infuse that in oil to make salves and balms.”

Following the fall harvest, and as the slower winter season approaches, Lily expressed her excitement for upcoming projects at the garden. She plans to continue volunteering through the end of the year and has been considering applying for an internship with the garden next summer.

“I think right now we’re focused on creating situations where the plants can grow in the spring,” Lily shared. “Taking up roots from trees that are a little bigger and rearranging the space a bit…I’m excited to see what will go on outside of the growing season, and I think there is still a lot of opportunity for what we can do.”