A Master gardener's Concerns
To the Editor:
I am hopeful that many people have read The Newtown Bee article last week regarding the eviction of Fairfield County UConn Extension in Stony Hill, Bethel.
I can imagine that you may also share our dismay and bewilderment over this eviction by Stony Hill Preserve. No clear reasoning has been given by SHP for the eviction.
The Demonstration Vegetable Garden at this location has been a labor of love and learning since 2013. Each season the garden’s harvest has increased (to 1,200 lbs annually), with all produce donated to local food banks.
The Fairfield County Extension Service at this location is a valuable asset to the community. Please offer your support for signing the petition.
To lose this ideal location would be a real shame.
Thank you!
Christine Winner, Master Gardener
Newtown
As a budding senior citizen, a single empty nester, someone who always enjoyed gardening, I was thrilled to discover UCONNs Master Gardener Program a few years ago. IT WAS A LOT OF WORK and hours of commitment, and I learned so very much.
Not only about plants, insects, water usage, fertilizers and soil quality; but about community, making new friends, and that as one ages, that our usefulness does not wane.
It is sad this invaluable resource is threatened with removal as the extension office appears to be losing its home.
As a society, shouldn’t we value the opportunities to gather and learn new skills we can pass along to the next generation as well as our peers?
It will be a great loss to the area if the extension office loses its home to what? Is there a similar venue planned for this site—-an educational site bringing people together to foster learning? Or will it become yet another stretch of commercialization? How wonderful if the powers that be would choose to continue to support such an invaluable resource for all ages in our area. From the youngest child planting a radish seed for the first time to the white haired senior who remains a font of gardening knowledge.