Bowen Health Opens Community Garden in Huntington, Provides Residents with Accessible Avenue to Homegrown Produce
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Bowen Health, Indiana’s largest community mental health center and a nonprofit healthcare organization dedicated to caring for the whole person, is furthering its local impact with a community garden at Bowen Health – Huntington, located at 2860 Northpark Ave, Huntington, IN 46750.
The Bowen Health – Huntington community garden is one of three publicly available community gardens located throughout Bowen Health’s 22-county service area across northeast and north central Indiana.
“We have this catchphrase where we say, ‘We’re cultivating community, but we’re harvesting hope,’” said Lori Augustus, Bowen Health Executive Director – Southeast Indiana. “It’s a lot of manual work, but it is a labor of love. We are harvesting hope for these individuals and that is important.”
According to research from Feeding America, in Huntington County, 5,700 people, or 15.5 percent of the community, are experiencing food insecurity.
“The gardens started with the thought of food insecurity, and how does food insecurity play into a person’s overall well-being,” shared Katie Shomo, Bowen Health Director of Community Engagement – Huntington County. “When there is a food insecurity problem, there’s uncertainty on where the food is coming from next, which leads to uncertainty in all aspects of life. Being able to address that is helping people feel safe to get other support and other resources they need.”
Located directly behind the Bowen Health – Huntington location, the community garden gives everyone in the area, regardless of whether they are receiving services from Bowen Health, a space to enjoy nature and find new experiences, foods, and activities that lead to human connection with family, friends, and other community members.
Bowen Health’s commitment to providing accessible resources to Indiana residents goes beyond healthcare. With an emphasis on cultivating integrated care for the mind and body, the expanding community gardens project has seen continued success and positive community responses throughout the organization’s service areas.
To view a short overview of the Bowen Health – Huntington community garden and all other community gardens, visit BowenHealth.org/Who-We-Are, navigate to the bottom of the page to the “Community” section and click “See the Whole Playlist.” The Bowen Health – Huntington video is titled “Harvesting Hope.”