By Aidan Mortensen | KOAL News
Marking the start of a grander gardening initiative in the Helper area, Recollab, in collaboration with the nonprofit Helper Engine, will host a seed-starting workshop on Sunday, April 5, starting at 11 a.m., at the Old Store in Kenilworth.
Helper Engine Vice-Chair Oran Stainbrook joined the KOAL newsroom to preview the event and what he hopes it will grow into.
Opening our conversation, Stainbrook provided background on the Helper Engine: “The Helper Engine is a rebrand. So, Helper formerly had two separate 501 (c) (3) nonprofits. There was a Main Street America-affiliated board, as well as the Helper Arts Alliance, that oversaw the Helper Arts Festival. They thought it was a little redundant to have two, so they decided to combine them into a single nonprofit. The new board was brought on, and together we came up with the new name: Helper Engine.”
He continued,” So it’s kind of a comprehensive organization that’s meant to support main street businesses’ economic vitality, facilitate volunteer events, and really support any member of the community that wants to do a project on their own.”
Switching focus to the event, Stainbrook shared the inspiration behind the workshop,” We did a community listening effort that included an anonymous survey, So just trying to get a lot of feedback about what are the sorts of things that people want to see happening in Helper. And I had heard that there was interest in people learning how to garden and get more involved in learning how to grow their own food.”
Added Stainbrook,” Long term, we want to work toward establishing an actual community garden project in Helper, and we have a site identified for that. But we thought a really easy way to start is just putting on a seed starting workshop for people who have never done it before. If it’s intimidating, we’re going to walk you through it and provide all the supplies so you can take home a planted seed tray and start growing your own vegetables and herbs.”
Space is limited for the workshop. For those interested, registration costs $25 and can be done by messaging 510-703-3166. “The workshop fee is $25. But you know, I really don’t want that to be a barrier to anybody. If the cost is a concern, just let me know, and we’ll work something out,” said Stainbrook.
Closing our conversation, Stainbrook stated,” Get outside and start gardening. The weather is perfect for it.”
Recollab and The Helper Engine’s Seed Starting Workshop takes place on Sunday, April 5, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Old Store in Kenilworth. Registration is $25 and can be done by messaging 510-703-3166.
