Written by Sam Wong
On May 30th the Mashkikii;aki’ing team at The Stop and Na-Me-Res partnered up to organize the annual Spring Open House at Hillcrest Park. The event brought together the Stop community, Na-me-res, partnered organizations, and many locals who live in the Wychwood community, and served to not only introduce people to the garden, but also to celebrate it. The three-hour long event featured an introduction to the garden by the coordinator of the Sagatay program at Na-Me-Res, John, who supports the men in their life skills training and also with cultural teachings. The men later drummed and sang as guests enjoyed a barbeque lunch. Guests enjoyed tours of the garden space, and were told about the work that has been done in the space over the last of couple years.
The Open House has become a time where the surrounding community can come together and learn about the partnership between The Stop and Na-Me-Res, the history of the garden, about Indigenous land stewardship, and about the importance of this site in their neighborhood. The Mashkikii;aki’ing garden was formed over 20 years ago, when Native Men’s Residence requested that a plot in Hillcrest park be stewarded by the organization. Na-Me-Res often works with Indigenous medicines to support the men in healing, and previously did not have access to a place to grow these plants. Ever since the city agreed to Na-Me-Res stewarding the plot, the garden has grown and provided greater access to these medicines.
“Having these open houses is an excellent way to connect with the locals and bring awareness of the work we do. Through The Stop, we are able to teach about food sovereignty, land stewardship and encourage mens wellness and healing at the Mashkikii;aki’ing garden. It’s a fun time to highlight that this garden isn’t a regular community garden but one led by NaMeRes with support from The Stop, showcasing the garden and educating the community. It was a beautiful event and we look forward to hosting another one this fall.”
Magpie, Mashkikii;aki’ing Garden Coordinator
Several years ago, Na-Me-Res and the Stop formed a partnership where The Stop offers a meal program and educational gardening workshops for the participants, as well as support in the stewardship and upkeep of the space. This year we’ve already learned many skills together including seed starting, invasive removal, planting and pruning, and have shared many cultural teachings about the plants that we work with. This garden not only serves as the setting for one of the men’s life skills programs, but it is also a safe and comfortable space that the men from Na-Me-Res can access whenever they need.
As was said in the introduction of the space by John, the Mashkikii;aki’ing garden is one of the only gardens in Toronto that is created by, run by, and for Indigenous people in Toronto, and for this reason the most important part of the garden will always be to support the men from Na-Me-Res. With that said, the team is thankful for the support of the community and encourage folks to come say hi and look around the garden freely. We look forward to hosting the Fall Open House in October which will feature a delicious meal from our fall crops!
You can keep an eye out for community events at the Mashkikii;aki’ing Garden through our Instagram, @thestopcfc, Facebook, @TheStopCommunityFoodCentre or our website, http://www.thestop.org. To contact us regarding volunteering, donations, partnership opportunities and more, please contact Hilda Nouri at hilda@thestop.org.