Dylan Chew
Gold Winner Hope Blooms
Silver Winner Halifolks
Bronze Winner Common Roots Urban Farm
More than 100 Syrian refugees moved in across the street from Hope Blooms’ community garden over the last year—the vast majority with young children and many of them farmers in their home country. Come springtime, those refugees were visiting the garden. “We started communicating through apps on our phones,” says Hope Blooms organizer Jessie Jollymore. Community suppers, barbecues and the first ever Viola Desmond Outdoor Theatre summer film festival (featuring Arabic-subtitled movies) followed. Hope Blooms is now offering up its kitchen for some of the families to bake bread and sell at the Seaport Market. All this with limited funding, and a lot of heart.
