A planting spree at the Olds Hospital and Care Centre, which saw 1,000 tulip bulbs planted to celebrate Canada's 150th birthday went well, according to Shannon Powell, one of the event's organizers.
About 90 students, seniors and other citizens turned out for the planting, which took place Oct. 4 in the facility's long-term care gardens.
It was part of a nationwide effort to have 150 gardens planted across the country, to celebrate in 2017 the 150th anniversary of the founding of Canada.
“I think the turnout was amazing and the interconnection between the youth and the seniors and adults of the community was fantastic,” Powell says.
Those planting bulbs included students from École Deer Meadow School's gardening academy as well as Olds High School, along with several seniors.
Other participants included representatives of groups like the Olds Institute, Communities In Bloom, the Rotary Club of Olds and Mountain View Seniors' Housing. Town crier Denis Patry, who operates a greenhouse, was on hand too, but not in his town crier garb.
Powell notes a concerted effort was made to ensure people got acquainted with each other.
“We had people kind of get to know one another because we split people into four groups. So we had two groups going and planting right away. But before they got into planting bulbs we actually had them find three common things between each other,” she says.
Now that the planting is complete there's not much more that can be done, Powell says.
“We just sit and wait,” she says with a laugh.
"I think the turnout was amazing and the interconnection between the youth and the seniors and adults of the community was fantastic."SHANNON POWELLONE OF THE EVENT'S ORGANIZERS
