Urban Farm Roof Deck Garden Revitalization

Our Urban Farm Roof Deck garden revitalization project is underway. Along with our 2 urban farms located at our residences in the Bronx and the Upper East Side of Manhattan, we also have a thriving roof deck garden at our headquarters on the Upper West Side. With the start of Spring, we are preparing our outdoor spaces for flowers, trees and beautiful colors.

On our roof deck garden we are upgrading planter boxes and benches. We will begin planting flowers and trees as soon as the weather stays warm. Currently Bridge horticulture workers maintain the roof deck garden; they help with new plantings and regular watering during the season. This year we plan to add an area for growing herbs. We will use the herbs in The Bridge food program and in cooking classes we offer to clients.   
 


The roof deck garden was started in 2005 with an initial grant from The Burpee Foundation, the founding donor of The Bridge Horticulture Training Program. The program is a unique community partnership with the Horticultural Society of New York (HSNY). Additional support from The Burpee Foundation this year will help continue the roof deck garden, which can encourage new Bridge horticulture interns to get involved. The program offers clients work training, stipends, and an important opportunity to be productive, active and is therapeutic.

In June we will honor George Ball, President of the W. Atlee Burpee Company and The Burpee Foundation, for his outstanding support for this important program. The horticultural training program that was started on the roof deck garden has grown each year with private support and now includes two urban farms.

Social Work Month

March is Social Work Month. Here at The Bridge we would like to take this opportunity to recognize all the social workers that play such a huge role in the success of our clients. The goal of Social Work Month is to promote the importance of social workers. The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) has designated the theme of this year’s Social Work Month as “Social Workers Change Futures.”

Social workers are agents of positive change, who have the power to solve some of our nation’s most pressing challenges. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are around 640,000 professional social workers in the United States who have dedicated their careers to helping people improve their lives. At The Bridge, social workers assist people with mental illness by helping them cope with and solve issues in their everyday lives, which contributes to them being able to meet their Life Role Goals and lead more independent lives.

The Bridge Horticulture Program

The Bridge Horticulture Program just took a huge step forward. Dr. Peter Beitchman, Executive Director of The Bridge, recently announced that George Ball, Chairman of the Board of the Burpee Foundation, has awarded a generous $25,000 grant for The Bridge Urban Farm Horticultural Program. The goals of the Urban Farms are to teach clients about the benefits of eating vegetables and fruit, provide free and easy access to vegetables in order to increase their intake in order to improve their health; to reduce reliance on food banks and other food resources, and to teach them about good nutrition.  The farms also provide our clients with work training opportunities in horticulture and paid jobs.

As reported in the New York Non Profit Press, Dr. Beitchman said, “We are delighted that The Burpee Foundation has donated this generous grant to our Urban Farm Horticultural Program. George Ball and The Burpee Foundation were pioneer supporters of The Bridge’s Horticultural program when it began in 2005.”

The Bridge Horticulture Program, in collaboration with The Horticultural Society of NY, began on the garden roof deck of the Manhattan headquarters of The Bridge (where a plaque commemorates the Burpee Foundation support), and has expanded to include two urban farms, one in the Bronx and one in East Harlem. The Urban Farm Program has grown dramatically as it impacts several neighborhoods throughout the city.

For the clients of The Bridge, eating and growing their own vegetables and fruits, coupled with working and being outdoors triggers both illness prevention and healing responses. Clients have started and maintain a blog of their experiences called My Urban Farm where they outline their accomplishments and illustrate their enthusiasm and involvement.

Personalized Recovery Oriented Services Programs

Personalized Recovery Oriented Services Programs (PROS) is a recovery-oriented program for individuals with serious mental illness. The Bridge launched PROS on September 1st of this year. The goal of the program at The Bridge is to integrate rehabilitation services in a way that facilitates the participants’ abilities  to achieve their independent living goals.

In PROS,  participants first identify their own individual Life Role Goals. Once a participant’s goals are identified (in life domains including relationships, employment, housing, education, spiritual and leisure time activities), the next step is to identify the obstacles that must be overcome in order to achieve them. Participants then receive the tailored PROS services that are designed to address the obstacles and promote success in assuming the desired Life Roles.

Initial reaction to PROS at The Bridge has been uniformly positive. The structure of the program, which uses small groups for learning, allows for individualized services that maximize the opportunities for participants to make rapid progress in achieving their goals. We look forward to sharing the outcomes of this important new program.