Shelley Swidnicki and the Family Resource Center (FRC) are looking to feed the community this summer with vegetables grown in our own backyard, Portage la Prairie.

With the state of inflation and food insecurity, Swidnicki, an outreach coordinator at the FRC, says she is looking to help those in need feed their families.

At the moment, Swidnicki and a handful of volunteers are preparing a garden that will grow tomatoes, cucumbers, broccoli, cauliflower, beans, corn and squashes.

"I have a couple of piles of dirt that have grass growing out of them right now," she continues. "I'm passionate about helping people. It just feels good to give back to people and help people out with their barriers."

She explains that she hopes to make this a community effort and start something that could become a tradition for years to come.

"I have Grade 3 students at Fort la Reine School who have started plants for me from seeds, so it gave them a little job to do. The message to them was about how they're helping the community. I go there every Monday."

Swidnicki says involving the kids is part of getting them to take ownership of the food on their tables.

"We're going to teach the kids here and provide some education as well."

McMunn and Yates donated materials to get the initiative started, according to Swidnicki. She says they are looking for some more helping hands.

"I did call out to the community on the Portage Queries Page (Facebook) for volunteers to come here and help me get these beds ready because we need to get them filled up with vegetables." 

Swidnicki notes that after the garden gets off the ground and sprouts up, she wants to do some vegetable canning sessions to help the community preserve food and make it go further.