Judy is a volunteer with the Yard Garden Harvest Project (YGHP). Born and raised in the Little Mountain-Riley Park neighbourhood, Judy was the first homeowner to share her yard with LMNHS for the Yard Garden Harvest Project. 6 years later, Judy continues to support the YGHP and the Neighbourhood House, hosting potlucks and volunteer orientations on her patio, and opening up her home for food storage for the Food Distribution Program. Judy spoke with us about how her “City Farm” has become somewhat of a local landmark and a source of joy and community engagement for her.  

Did you know anything about neighbourhood houses before you started volunteering?

My kids would have gone down there, they were involved in things. And we’ve done Christmas hampers over the years when they’ve been raising money. My family has always given back to the community.

What do you think is special about LMNHS or neighbourhood houses in general?

The different people that have come through! The year before last year there was a son lived who lived here, he and his mother came from Ukraine. She didn’t speak a word of English, but she came and she sat in for the orientation, and she loved working in the garden. She was actually learning her English from being in the garden.

Are there any special moments or stories that you want to share with the community?

There’s a sign out front [about the YGHP], and when we have the farmer’s market every Saturday a lot of people walk by my house. And they stop and they look, and it’s got the QR code, and my kitchen is at the front and if they see me I’ll go out. Then there’s actually been people where I say go around, and then they take a look and I explain to them.

My kids talk about it too, my grand kids,they’re amazed! And they’ll say my grandma has a farm in her backyard. Then they get to explain to everybody what’s happening in Grandma Judy’s backyard. And I get little things like that sign back there, it says “Grandma Judy’s City Farm”. My sister-in-law, who lives way up north, she heard about it, and she did that for me. [The Yard Garden] just gives a sense of community, peace. There’s been days when things have happened in the last six years, as we get older people get sick and people have passed, and that feeling of just looking over there,and knowing that I’m giving back. There’s nothing that compares to that. I really and truly feel it in my heart, and people see it when I talk about it.

Diane has lived and worked in the Riley Park neighbourhood for almost 20 years, and her first LMNHS volunteer experience was with the Yard Garden Harvest Project in 2022. As a lifelong gardener she found her happy place in neighbours’ yards—growing vegetables alongside fellow volunteers practising sustainable gardening, and contributing to the creation of pollinator-friendly and diverse urban foodscapes. After updating her skills with the Master Gardener course at VanDusen Botanical Garden last year she continued her garden volunteering and mentoring with both the YGHP and RPCG. She is now helping to build the Learning Garden, where community members can gather to learn about plants of significance to Coast Salish peoples.

Why is volunteering important to you?

For me, it’s community connection. It’s getting to know my neighbours, it’s a chance to share my skills and expertise, to help people. Being outside and putting your hands in the soil is very therapeutic for people, including myself, and so I find that you know, you have a long day at work, or you’re trying to solve a problem, or you need a little time to yourself, you just go to the garden. There’s a Japanese phrase, they call it “forest bathing”, and it’s just being in nature, just letting yourself enjoy your surroundings. Green spaces are more and more important, when so many of us are apartment dwellers who don’t have a green space, and so these become extra important as we densify our living situation.

What do you think is special about LMNHS or neighbourhood houses in general?

I’m continually amazed by the number of volunteers, the diversity of volunteers. We have everyone, from high school students to 80-year-olds. It makes me so happy that there’s that group of people, 200 to 300 people, who just want to support the work that is going on Little Mountain, and I think that’s a tribute to the House, the programs, the people that pour their heart into creating this environment for people to enjoy and access.

Do you have any advice for current or prospective volunteers about getting more involved at LMNHS?

Just come and hang out. I guarantee that if you come and volunteer you will come back. I think that one of the things that LMNHS does so well is the volunteer experience. It’s not just come and work and do what we’re doing. But it’s come and enjoy yourself, learn a new skill, and we always gather around the table with some food and share our stories and our backgrounds. You learn so much, not just in the garden and the skill of gardening, but you learn so much about other things by talking to people who have different backgrounds, experiences, and cultures. I think we do that so well at the neighbourhood house, we embrace all that diversity, and I think that’s what creates that cultural safe space where people feel comfortable sharing their stories and what goes on in their life.