Thanks to a project in a local high school geometry class, assisted living residents at Good Samaritan Society – The Pines in Jackson, MN, received two planter boxes for their community garden.
Jackson County Central High School math teacher Rhonda Schmidt said that the project was part of her “Geometry in Construction” class, and she and her students used the course to make an impact around the community. The idea for planter boxes came after students sold handmade Christmas trees during the holiday season, and it took off from there.
“One of the ladies who had bought some [Christmas] trees contacted me to see if we would build some garden beds for her,” Schmidt said. “So we started out building one for her, then we just put it on Facebook to see if anybody would be interested. We had quite a few that responded to us to build them, so we were building them and selling them. [Then] someone posted on Facebook, ‘You should donate them to the Pines.’”
That simple Facebook comment proved to be a lightbulb moment for the class. A group of 21 students designed the plans for the planter boxes and then used pine to make the vision a reality. After completion, the last thing to do was make a delivery to the assisted living community, where the residents were waiting with excitement and anticipation.
“When I told our residents we were getting [planter boxes] and they were going to be delivered, they were over the moon with excitement,” said Allison Snyder, RN, manager of The Pines. “We have a lot of residents who like to garden and plant flowers, so this was awesome. [The boxes] are raised up, so they can participate even if they have a walker. They don’t have to get down on the ground to plant flowers. When they arrived that morning, we probably had 12 to 15 residents almost immediately after lunch go outside and check them out.”
Even weeks after the unveiling, Snyder said, the boxes are still a popular gathering place on campus. Although the boxes are full of flowers at the moment, expect a few juicy tomatoes to enter the mix at some point, she added.
“Daily, I’m still having residents out there admiring the flowers,” Snyder said. “It means a lot that a younger generation is supporting us, and they’re taking pride in what they built. [The residents] want to grow some tomatoes, so we’re just kind of waiting for the right time in the season.”
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