Massillon Community Health Garden

Our second season at The Massillon Community Health Garden has officially begun after a successful first year of set-up and harvesting. We formed many relationships with community members and organizations, we received good insight for this upcoming year to continue growing our garden! We obtained our initial goal and hope for the garden to provide a place for community members to share their garden knowledge with others, to foster fellowship, and increase fruits and vegetable availability to those in food desert neighborhoods throughout Massillon.

In 2024 we hope to incorporate more youth in our garden. We have begun working with Massillon City School teachers to incorporate various student expertise to further our initiatives. We are coordinating with other local organizations for youth to receive service hours all while teaching them the art of growing food and how to prepare it. Growing, prepping and cooking fresh fruits and vegetables is a life skill we are striving to instill in our young people in the Massillon community.

We also encourage that the garden is a great place to take a break from our phones, the chaos of our world and take a mental health break. The garden is place of beauty in our community.

The Health Department has partnered with Austin Bailey Foundation, Bachtel Excavating, John Patrick Picard Architect Inc., The Lions Club, MCTV and Rivertree Massillon to make this project possible. Purchasing supplies, constructing garden beds, plotting the plants, and tilling the land began in April 2023 and the garden officially started on May 6, 2023. Twenty community members including a local girl scout troop helped plant 8 elevated and 10 raised beds filled with over 130 vegetables, herbs, and fruits. We also coordinated with the Massillon Museum to have a Do the Mu day where youth and adults created rocks that are displayed at the garden. It was a fun project to raise awareness about the garden and its purpose.

Last year the Health Department created a cookbook for tips on cleaning, preparing, storing, and cooking our harvest. Harvest was be dispersed for free in food desert neighborhoods and pantries with the cookbook. In 2024 a goal is to teach community members additional skills such as canning, creating sauces or jams/jellies, and how to grow a fall garden in our new greenhouse!

One of the main health priorities in the 2022 Community Health Assessment is Obesity/Healthy Lifestyle Choices, the garden is helping provide for this community need.

Follow our Massillon Community Health Garden on Facebook for updates or to join us.

The garden is located at 1600 Main Ave W. (Back left corner of the RiverTree Church parking lot.)