spring 2011 newsletter - disabled independent gardeners association

8/4/2019 Spring 2011 Newsletter - Disabled Independent Gardeners Association

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C A L I F O R N I A

alifornia Horticultural Therapy Group Newsletter

Horticultural

Therapy

Recovery ofCognitiveFunction UsingHorticulturalActivities

By Patty Dunks

AHTA Conference 10/13-10/16/2010

Presentation Review

At the American Horticultural

Therapy Association Annual

Conference in Chicago, Illinois, Dr.

Nishino, presented the results of a

emarkable two year research project

he completed in Japan. His project

tudied the impact of horticulture and

nature based activities in increasing

cognitive abilities in those who

already have decreased cognitive

function.

His program was a day program

for elders where people had

participated in the program within a

social context of community. Peop

ate and cooked together, participatin cognitive stimulation and games

participated in horticulture activitie

and took a daily group walk in natu

Dr. Nishinos presentation inclu

showing brain scans of his

participants at the beginning of the

program, demonstrating their

cognitive decline. After two years

participation in the program, 70% participants had a recovery of

cognitive function. He also attribut

their recovery to being in commun

and a lessening of depression and

isolation. It was a pleasure meeting

him and hearing about his

inspirational program.

T and Cognitive

unctioning

atty Dunks reviews

he amazing research ofDr. Nishino asresented at the AHTA

Annual Conference in010. HT improvesognitive functioning inlders!age 1

An Interview with

Marlene Javage

Read about this

pioneering woman inHT!Page 2

Elkus Ranch

The Elkus Ranch offersa plethora of HT

activities for people ofall ages andbackgrounds. From

gardens to farmanimals, Elkus Ranchhas it all!Page 3

Submissions

The how-to ofsubmitting an article

for this newsletter!Page 5

Horticultural Therapy

Institute

This incredible

resources makes itpossible for anyoneinterested to pursue HTas a profession. Checkout this information tosecure your spot intheir upcoming classes!Page 5

CAAHT Marches On

Marlene Javage rechow the CA HT ch

began and intervieMeredith Ball whillooking toward the

future.Page 4

A Quarterly Newsletter Issue No. 2 Spring 20

The Next AHTA Annual

Conference will be

October 21-23, 2011 in

Asheville, NC.

Visit ahta.org for more

information and to

register!


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C A H T G R O U P

California Horticultural Therapy Group New

An Interview with HT Pioneer Marlene Javage

Marlene Javage was the lady on the front lines! She adventured throughout the state of Californiagrow the California HT Chapter. She inspired and still inspires all of us along the way!

What was the reason you decided to head into the field of Horticultural Therapy?

I have been an active interior plantscaper for 30 years, owned and operated JAM Custom Plantscapes and continue toconsult and design healing gardens. Originally, I was very interest in HT but could not find a degree program on the westcoast. So, I became an Interiorscaper. This choice turned out to be eye opening and very fulfilling. As I began to knowindividuals in companies and residences I was asked a lot of questions about plants. People wanted to know how to growtheir own green thumbs, they wanted to identify a favorite plant, they wanted to grow their own gardens. I becameknown as the Plant Lady and I realized I was becoming a plant therapist so, it was back to investigating HorticulturalTherapy. I found AHTA, flew to their yearly conference in Albuquerque New Mexico, fell in love with the people, theconcepts and the work. I have been hooked ever since.

What is one of your favorite success stories of delivering HT to a client?I was asked to introduce horticulture as a career to Olive Crest's TEC (youth at risk) program in Santa Ana, CA. Noproblem, so I brought 75 large swaths of lavender and 100 lucky plants to their job fair. The students flooded our booth,they sniffed, they crushed the lavender flowers and they were fascinated by the lucky plant. I cut the lucky plant in half,handed out roots and shoots and challenged them to a rooting, budding contest. The president and staff were veryinterested in this phenomena. They wanted us to start a HT program but made it clear they had no funds and we couldnot use any tools that could potentially be used as a weapon. A wonderful science teacher said what the hay...let's startit anyway, a faithful friend said I will help and the "Beautiful Garden" was born. That year we raised enough vegetablesand flowers to put on a May harvest luncheon. The sense of pride and accomplishment was palatable. The garden andthe students were truly beautiful.

What is one of your favorite memories of developing the HT chapter in California?Our Chapter met quarterly at sites practicing HT. We were in for a fantastic surprise that Saturday in Los Angeles as wewere shuttled to a safe house for abused women. The exterior was nondescript but when we entered the portal....whoa,the warmth of the kitchen and the beauty of the garden was like we were on a holiday by the sea. The HTR's , theDirector, Therapist and articulate Hort Educators took us on a journey into their healing world. I will never forget thefaces of the women, the joy and pride of the staff, the success stories and the bountiful garden they worked ineveryday....it was magic and it was simple abundance. The grace the staff extended to each other was inspiring. That

Saturday, I saw a beautiful example of dedication, trust and respect. That Saturday, inspires me still.

Where do you envision the HT Network Group in California five years from now?With the use of the Internet and it's ability to connect us all, the ability to do through research, the growth of greenawareness and the need for people to return to natural healing practices. I believe we are on the cusp of a potential thatis staggering. I believe Horticulture Therapy is the link between many healing disciplines and one of the most effectiveprocesses to bring lasting healing to people. As Evidenced Based Research is documented and assimilated byprofessionals (the body of evidence is growing expeditiously), I believe the desire for HT in many arenas will explode. Isee this thirst mounting. It is time for us to be prepared, it is time for us to develop a solid connection to each other.


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C A H T G R O U P

A Horticultural Therapy Group Newsletter

The Elkus Ranch

What does it take to start and run a ranch of such magnitude and such healing?

Leslie Jensen, Elkus Ranch Coordinator in Half Moon Bay, tells us how to start, a

how to be successful.When did the ranch begin and how? If others had this idea how would they go about starting a ranch similar to yours?Thirty-five years ago Richard Elkus donated the ranch to the University of California. Part of his vision for the ranch was for childrenwith special needs to have a place to go to get close to nature.

irst off, you would need a site that would work for this kind ofrogram and funding. Two biggies. These days lots of ranchersnd farmers are looking for additional revenues, so leasing oroordinating with these folks may be an option. Lots of grantsut there, just takes some major research. Just make sure youave all your ducks in a row with the county and any others who

may have a voice in this kind of project. Always lots of red tape.

What is your role at the ranch? How many other peoplework there and what are their roles?

am the ranch coordinator. I wear a lot of hats, scheduling, HR,vestock and land manager, curriculum etc. I have a lot of help;ranch manager, groundskeeper, science educator, and severalrogram leaders. Also lots of support from the local UC

Cooperative Extension office including bookkeeping, marketing,nd my boss, the director of UCCE/San Mateo who is along withther things our liaison to the University and the county.

What types of gardens do you have and what types ofnimals do you have?

We have a children's garden, sensory garden, and enablingarden with raised beds and hard packed surfaces. We haveheep, goats, chickens, rabbits, a llama, pigs, horses, donkeys,ats, and dogs.

What types of programs do you offer at the ranch? What types of HT programs do you offer?We offer California science standards educational programs for children ages preschool to high school. Very hands on minds on. Theserograms provide opportunities for students to experience first hand how food and clothing fiber are produced. Most are day tours,ome overnights. Some of our HT students return weekly to help out at the ranch. We also have summer camp, and a few publicvents.

How many people receive services at the ranch each year, and what are the population of people - students, elders, etc...?We see about 6,000 people a year. Mostly pre-k to 3rd grade, but also many 4th grade to high school of all abilities. Some elders andome of our HT students are young adults. We rarely turn any group away.

What got you interested in HT and what route did you take to get toyour current position?Since part of our mission is to serve students with special needs I felt Ineeded to educate myself in order to understand what that reallymeant. I had degrees in plant science and early childhood education. TheHT institute classes helped round it out all out and tie it together. I startedat the ranch as a program leader and was very fortunate to land the job ascoordinator when my boss retired.

A major goal of the ranch is to provide allof our guests the opportunity to get close to

the natural world, and hopefully leavewith a sense of stewardship for the

environment. Leslie Jensen, Elkus RanchCoordinator

htt ://ucanr.or /sites/elkus_ranch/


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C A H T G R O U P

California Horticultural Therapy Group New

CAAHTA NETWORK CONTINUES TO BLOOMbyMarlene Javage, former VPand newsletter editor for CAAHTA Chapter

Thank heavens for sprouts like Meredith Ball. I had heard from a few veteran CAAHTA members that a wonderful Facebook site was up andunning. Derron Dike (CAAHTA chapter founder) found the site and yippeeit was not only cheery but full of information and connections.

Patty Dunks, former presidentof the California Chapter of the American Horticulture Therapy (CAAHTA) contacted Meredith. We set up phoonference and brain stormed. As with all things horticulture therapy orientedwe began to noticeoh my gosh, we are on the same page. Patwho has been keeping the CAAHTA web site up and running) and Meredith and I decided to take the plunge. Lets collaborate and see where t

etwork wants to grow. No formal structure has been developed so far, it is just a hope that this will serve to jump start the Network and providlace for HT as a profession to connect, share and grow. We will be posting articles, education opportunities, HT contact phone numbers andwebsite addresses on the website. We are open to any ideas, suggestions, stories, information and we are looking forward to having a CA Netwmeeting soon. It is always so much fun.

The following is an interview with Meredith. She has inspired us all. She has confirmed our belief that allied professions are indeed looking forther avenues to bring horticultural therapy into their practices.

Why did you decide to pursue the discipline of HT? How did you find AHTA?

ince I am farther along in my career in Social Work I began looking for different types of creative treatments for clients. I have always loved nnd nature has always been very healing for me. In the past I had successful sessions with clients in gardening, planting trees, and creating planrafts. I began to think that there must be a way to incorporate nature even more effectively into therapy, and indeed, once I started to researchhere is! I just began to research nature-based therapy online and found a plethora of information and books. Ecopsychology, a book edited by

Theodore Roszak, is one that is truly beautiful and eye-opening about the mutual healing that can take place between people and the earth. Dr.

Leslie Gray does amazing work and study about the "reciprocal transformation" that can take place between people and Earth. I continue to reand research and study to begin to put these practices into place for my clients. I found the AHTA by researching online.

What sparked your interest in the natural world?

One of my first memories of nature as a child was planting seeds in the vegetable garden at our home with my father. We had so much fun diggn the dirt, poking the seeds into the ground and later on harvesting these big, beautiful vegetables beneath the summer sun. We grew the mostelicious corn, tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, and more. New Jersey definitely is the Garden State!

Why did you decide to become a licensed clinical social worker?

earned my Master's in Social Work in 1999 from Bryn Mawr Graduate School of Social Work and Social Research because I thoroughly andimply love helping people to reach their fullest potential. Once I moved out West to California I pursued and earned my LCSW credential bechat provided me more opportunities to help people in a variety of settings and ways. I have provided therapy to children and families at a grouome, in the community, and in private practice. I have provided therapy to adults who were homeless, in recovery from drugs, and in jail. I halso been a supervisor and a Program Director at a community mental health clinic. The common thread in all of my work for the past fifteen y

s Social Worker has been a consistent belief that people can reach their own goals when provided support, compassion and skills. I have seenhousands of successful clients reach their own goals. This is the most rewarding job for me.

What did you like about the classes you took through Horticultural Therapy Institute?

o far I took Introduction to Horticultural Therapy by Rebecca Haller with the Horticultural Therapy Institute. I enjoyed the material she coverhe journal articles we read, the research aspect of the course, and the people I met. It was nice to meet people with similar interests and to hearhey apply HT - it gave me new ideas!

What would you like to be doing 5 years from now?

My current goal is to establish a private practice that utilizes HT. Five years from now I would love to be able to have multiple HT practices wrained Social Workers at each. In addition, I have an app I designed, Green Quest, for kids and families to have fun helping the earth everydayope is to have enough people buy this app so that I can start a local community and school garden fund to set up gardens wherever there is a n

How and why would you encourage others to participate in CAHT Network?

As a Social Worker I have always engaged in community organizing. I believe in the power of like-minded people gathering to make a differenOnce I took the Intro to HT class and heard Rebecca Haller say that there was a need to get a network revived in California, I immediately start

acebook page and began working on a newsletter to help to organize the devoted HTs in California. When we get together we can share whatave learned, create new ideas and programs, and thus help the people we provide HT to even more!

Any personal stories about HT?

or our Intro to HT class we needed to pitch why HT is important to our agency or a specific audience of people. We practiced with the class audience and I shared a story of a client I worked with. He was very angry and sad, having difficulty in school and fighting with peers. He waears old and most people had given up on him. I decided to try something different so we planted a tree. This tree planting took several weekuring the course of these weeks, he began to verbalize his feelings of anger and get his anger as well as his tears out while he was shoveling. Had a difficult past filled with loss and abuse in his family, and by the end of these HT sessions he was able to release a lot of pain and begin to he hope for new growth - in the tree and in himself. I have had many clients benefit from nature-based therapy and HT and am looking forwar

many more!


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C A H T G R O U P

alifornia Horticultural Therapy Group Newsletter

Fundamentals of Horticultural Therapy

Christine Kramer, Program Manager, HT InstituteLearn how to combine a passion for gardening and helping people through the innovative field of horticultural thera

oin students from across the country to learn more by enrolling in Fundamentals of Horticultural Therapy this fall i

one of three locations.

four-day class will

oduce the profession

practice ofticultural therapy,

ch uses gardening

vities in community

dens, childrens

gardens, health care and

human service programs.

The course describes the

types of programs utilizing

HT as well as the

cognitive, social,

emotional and physical

goals for the varied people

served. It also exposes

students to resources for

further exploration and to

professionals in the field.

At the non-profit

Horticultural Therapy

Institute (HTI) our mission

is to provide education and

training in HT to those

new to, or experienced

with, the practice of using

gardening and plants to

improve the lives of others.

Take one class, or the full

certificate program (four

classes total) and see how

our curriculum can meet

your needs. With its unique

format, you dont need to

live where the classes are

held and the formataccommodates those who

must travel to attend.

Upcoming classes include:

Missouri BotanicalGardenSt. Louis, MOOct. 6-9, 2011Deadline for enrollment:Sept. 6Fee: $750 or $600 for fulltime college students

Anchor Center for BlindChildrenDenver, CONov. 3-6, 2011

Deadline for enrollmenOct. 3

Fee: $750 or $600 for time college students

Skyland TrailAtlanta, GANov. 17-20, 2011Deadline for enrollmenOct. 17Fee: $750 or $600 for time college students

For more information

enroll call 303-388-05or visit the web site atwww.htinstitute.org.

HT Programming Class, Garden At Heather Farms,

April 2011

O A L L C A L I F O R N I A H T S,

is that time of year at last! The colors of Spring are sprouting up through the once cold, hard soil. The sun is shining longer

uring the day. This means we can start creating even more HT activities outdoors for our clients!

s we head into Spring with excitement for great HT programs to come, it is also time to share with each other our resources a

deas to continue to make this an excellent year of growth for HT! From the American Horticultural Therapy Association to th

Horticultural Therapy Institute to this fabulous new California HT group now found on Facebook and LinkedIn, we now, more

ver have a consistent stream of education available to us.

hope that with the interviews in this Spring Newsletter you were able to learn more about the history of the HT network in

alifornia. Marlene Javage, Derron Dike, and Patty Dunks were the wise people who started it all in order to lay a strong

undation for generations of HTs to come. Programs like the Elkus Ranch and courses at the Horticultural Therapy Institute

s all learning and growing in this fabulous field of Horticultural Therapy.

mail your article, information about your HT program, a poem, photos, or other artistic work to [email protected] to be featurehe next newsletter!

here are not many fields or professions today in which you can find such a holistically healing-minded group of people. Lets k

haring our ideas, successes and programs with each other to keep our group growing! Happy Spring!

reenly,

Meredith Ball, LCSW
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]://www.htinstitute.org/http://www.htinstitute.org/

spring 2011 newsletter - disabled independent gardeners association

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