A Healing Garden for Ventura County
Britany and I have a grand vision, beyond one-to-one garden mentoring. We dream of a healing garden, right here in Ventura County.
When I was being treated in Ohio, one place made a huge difference for me; the Gathering Place in Beachwood, Ohio.
Silk art drying on the covered patio at the Gathering Place
This was a non-clinical space where people with all cancer diagnoses could gather for support, classes, family activities, summer camp and more.
Fountain at the Gathering Place
In addition to the support classes, the Gathering Place had a garden. The garden was quiet and tucked away. You could feel comfortable taking off your wig and just sitting reading a book. It was always open and never crowded. There were fountains and short pathways to ease meditation and come to terms with how the diagnoses impacted your life.
Window to your new life
This wasn’t just flowers tucked into a parking lot. This was a series of vignettes designed to ease the transition to survivorship for the patient AND their village.
“Like everything inside The Gathering Place, Norma’s Garden was thoughtfully planned to support and provide comfort to its users. Designed by Virginia Burt of Visionscapes, Ontario, Canada, it includes 11 distinct small garden vignettes. Among these are: The Edible Garden, The Children’s Garden, The Storybook Maze, The Barnyard Garden, The Sacred Mount and the Secret Mystery Garden.”
We want to bring a garden like this to survivors in Ventura County. We introduced our preliminary vision at our launch party at Deeply Rooted in Camarillo. If you are interested in being a part of this vision, please contact us at info@backyardbreasties.org
Painting of Healing Garden Vision and the Breastie Bucket