A Half-Semester Update

 Hello! 

Welcome back to Nature's Voice, following our spring break, we are now half-way through the semester, and as the temperature begins to heat up, so does the commitment to these sustainability projects! 

The main focus of myself, CCCC, and Rosegrow, have been the rehabilitation of our Greenhouse, in tandem with the establishment of a community vegetable garden and re-wilded patch outside of Connelly Hall. We have had an exciting amount of dedication from all members of Rosemont community in moving these projects forward, with staff, faculty, and students all volunteering their time to help make a better world. The world we dream of is something that's only possible with the continued love and work of people from all walks of life, and it is due to the hope and heart of all of these individuals that any progress is able to be done at all; this is why, first of all, we must always pay respect to everyone in our community, who is working along with us, to ensure that we have hope of a brighter future. 

One of these individuals, who was dedicated to being a steward of our vegetable garden, was Patrick Herman. Patrick Herman worked in the mail room at Rosemont, and was a vital member of our community. He was a well-loved co-worker, and he made himself known to every student on campus, remembering names and facts about all those he encountered, and riding his bike across campus all times of day, in all weather, to keep our community running smoothly. In addition to his friendliness and dedication, he was an avid gardener, and always brought his fresh produce in to share. The tragic passing of Patrick Herman, on the 6th of February, marked a great loss to the Rosemont College community. 

The loss of Patrick inspired many to re-dedicate themselves to our community, as Patrick himself was such a kind, big-hearted, generous person on our campus. 

With this upswell of support, we've been able to create an actionable plan, and work on the creation of our vegetable garden, which will be named the Patrick Herman Memorial Garden. We've received support in the form of monetary donations, plant donations, donation of skilled labor to assist with the building of the garden and the refurbishment of our greenhouse. 

With all of this support, I am hoping that the Patrick Herman Memorial Vegetable Garden can be opened at our Mayday celebration this semester. This will allow our summer stewards, who have volunteered to help maintain this garden when students are on summer break, to take care of our garden once the spring semester is over. 

I am also planning with Rosegrow to begin the planting of several native plants in our re-wilded area, which will be next to Connelly Hall, and to exhibit some of this planting at our Mayday celebration, to give alumni, faculty, staff, and our greater community to see evidence of these projects, and the dedication that has been showed by many this semester. 

With these projects moving forward at high-speed, our seedling plantings are going to begin this Friday! 

Xx Mia Hoppel, Sustainability Intern