Edited By Danielle Nease
Tacoma Daily Index
Photo courtesy of
Leslie Livingstone
Local high school students and a group of residents of Lakewood Meadows, a SHAG senior living community, worked together to fill and plant 10 new raised garden beds at the community on Friday, June 23, at 5228 112th St. SW, Lakewood. The elevated gardens are designed to make it easy for the seniors to cultivate vegetables, herbs and blossoms, and also reap broader benefits.
SHAG is providing the garden beds and the soil; other materials have been donated by The Home Depot, Tacoma Mall Blvd. location. Manager Brianna Madison was able to approve the request to help out, and Home Depot provided lumber, nails and other materials to construct the raised beds. Home Depot has a generous donation program in place, with some stipulations to help sort the requests, such as raffles not being eligible.
“Many of our residents are longtime gardeners accustomed to growing produce and flowers and sharing them with their neighbors,” said Jay Woolford, executive director of SHAG. “These new beds will enable them to continue this meaningful tradition. They will also be able to provide their gardening wisdom with the students, which we hope will plant the seeds for friendships between the generations.”
About seven students and fifteen residents from SHAG Lake Meadows senior living community assisted at the intergenerational planting/gardening event. There was a lot of fun and smiles as they shared and learned and grew new friendships as well vegetables, herbs and blossoms. Students and volunteers came from several groups, including Charles Wright Academy, Lakewood Boys & Girls Club, Tacoma Community College, and Clover Park High’s Key Club.
Photos courtesy of Leslie Livingstone
About Senior Housing Assistance Group:
SHAG is a Washington non-profit organization formed nearly three decades ago to provide a sustainable lifestyle for seniors. We do this by building stable housing and creating communities, new friendships and new opportunities for your pursuits and experience. We understand the feelings, considerations and needs that may arise during this time of life and offer a potential for fulfillment that’s as refreshing as it is within reach.
Mission
Our mission is to provide sustainable senior housing and to improve the lives of seniors. We remove barriers to living independently and help our residents enjoy life by providing:
– A stable, safe and welcoming home
– A community of shared interests and caring friendships
– Services that support independence and unique needs
The Senior Housing Assistance Group (known throughout the Pacific Northwest as SHAG) is a Washington non-profit organization. Since 1988, SHAG has grown to be the largest non-profit provider of affordable rental apartment communities for low- and moderate-income seniors in the Puget Sound region. SHAG continues to grow by adding a total of more than 5000+ apartment homes to include apartment communities for seniors of ALL incomes. SHAG has enriched the lives of thousands of seniors in over 25+ communities from Bellingham to Olympia, including, of course, Seattle.
SHAG is dedicated to providing quality, affordable apartment homes and lifestyle enhancements to seniors age qualified who otherwise cannot afford to live well in retirement. This delivers a sustainable lifestyle for seniors, adds to healthy communities and eases the financial burden on government and seniors’ children.
