A trauma-based youth rehabilitation center, the first of its kind in Wisconsin, has gained more support for its holistic approach.
A $60 thousand grant from the National Association of Conservation Districts has allowed Racine County to launch a teaching garden and micro-nursery at the Caledonia facility.
The urban agriculture project will be housed at the county’s new $4o million detention and juvenile correction facility set to be completed in January 2025.
Land and Water Conservation Chairman Monte Osterman told TMJ4’s Tahleel Mohieldin that the initiative aims to help teach the center’s youth new skills and the value of creating something meaningful.
“There’s no better group of people to target than those that have come from challenged environments and having challenges in their life,” Osterman said. “It gives the people who are here, the students who are here an opportunity to look forward to something."
With an eye on environmental impact, Osterman said harvested seeds and native plants grown by youth will be put into county parks, buildings, and roadways.
Watch: Racine secures teaching garden funds for detention and rehabilitation facility
Vegetables grown will be used by youth in the facility.
Osterman said similar projects nationwide have had great success in the past but this project being done in a secure facility is unique.
In fact, the county is being tasked with creating a program manual for other communities to implement, Osterman explained,
He also said community members will be able to take the plants cultivated at the center into their own gardens and homes.
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