Bob Mattson, representing the American Legion, speaks with Ann Sullivan, Serenity Garden Friend; Janet Breithaupt and Nancy Backlund of the American Legion Auxiliary tour with Monica Anderson, one of the 3-M design team and her assistants, daughters Edith and Alma. Under the canopy are Kimber Wraalstad, North Shore Health’s CEO, and Nancy Koloski, Serenity Garden Project Manager.
All of the hard work and planning to build a serenity garden in the underdeveloped courtyard between the North Shore Health hospital and care center is taking shape.
According to one of the main drivers of this project, Mary Sanders, the serenity garden will be, “A peaceful space in nature for reflection and healing.”
And, added Sanders, “That vision is about to become reality.”
To help community members understand this vision, Serenity Garden’s planning committee hosted an on-site open house in the undeveloped courtyard of North Shore Health between a wing of the hospital and one of the care-center. Not able to access the garden through the café/ lounge area door due to Covid-19 restrictions, guests walked around the ambulance entrance to the site.
Hosts aided visualization with maps, posting signs for seating areas, and inserting deciduous or coniferous branches into upturned clay pots indicating where trees and shrubs will be planted this season after hardscaping and landscaping are completed.
A $60,000 grant from Lloyd K Johnson Foundation, $30,000 in memorial donations plus many hours of volunteer work brought this vision to life. The necessity of long-term sustainability brings us to:
Friends and Pavers
Serenity Garden Friends (SGF) will be vital for continued success. One can be a Serenity Garden Friend in a variety of ways that suit individual talents, skills, and interests from artistic (i.e. logo design) to fund-raising and promotional (i.e. creating a social media platform). Gardening skills will be needed come spring of 2021. To explore how you can be an Serenity Garden Friend, contact Mary Sanders at marylsanders@mail.com (note absence of “g”) or phone 218-387-1729.
Pavers–We need a coordinator for the sale and placement of memorial pavers in the more private seating area. To offer your help, contact Nancy Koloski, Project Manager, at nancykoloski@gmail.com or phone 218-663-0147.
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