Volunteers from Menzshed Kapiti along with Mandy Savage from the Cancer Society and volunteer Chandrika Kumaran. Photo / Rosalie Willis
Volunteers from Menzshed Kapiti along with Mandy Savage from the Cancer Society and volunteer Chandrika Kumaran. Photo / Rosalie Willis
The birds are singing despite the grey skies overhead when Kāpiti News visits the Cancer Society's Kāpiti Support Centre to see the centre's nearly complete garden.
The grand opening is scheduled for next week, and the garden is taking shape with a vegetable garden already complete, rosebushes planted and the groundwork done for a concrete slab to be laid before fruit trees are planted behind it.
The garden is a community partnership between the Cancer Society and Menzshed Kāpiti, who have provided the labour and most of the materials for the project.
"We want the garden to be a peaceful space away from the busy road so when people come into our support centre they can take time out and reflect," senior health promotions co-ordinator Mandy Savage said.
Cancer Society senior health promotions coordinator Mandy Savage showing off the new vegetable garden. Photo / Rosalie Willis
"It will be a place for people to come and access training or counselling when the weather is fine."
The garden has plenty of space for patients or workers to come and relax.
"The hope is to make it useful, more than just pretty.
"When we have workshops for volunteers or support groups for patients, we want this to be a nice, relaxing place to sit, a sanctuary away from busy Kapiti Rd."
The garden will have healing herbs, along with vegetables and fruit that patients and their families can have, with any excess to be given to the local foodbank.
"We already have tui hanging out in the flowers of the flax bushes, but we have bird feeders and sugar feeders to encourage more birds into the garden."
Special fragrant roses have also been planted, donated by Menzshed volunteer Robin Greiner, who took the time to plant them himself.
Volunteers Chandrika Kumaran and Robin Greiner helping in the new garden at the Cancer Society's Kapiti Support Centre. Photo / Rosalie Willis
The support centre is a one-stop shop for those who need any kind of cancer support in the Kāpiti district.
The centre is managed by Mandy along with 20 volunteers, who take turns on the front desk throughout the week.
There is also a part-time nurse and counsellor at the centre, providing support for not just patients but their families too.
"Counselling services are really important, there is a big demand for that in Kāpiti with other places struggling to keep up with demand.
"We don't just see the patients but their whole family including children.
"It's really cool to be a free provider, present in the community.
"While people will still need to go into Wellington for treatment, if you can get support and information from a local nurse, or counselling locally, that makes a massive difference."
The garden is another string added to the centre's bow and is already proving useful.
"A lot of the guys volunteering here, helping us build the garden are people that have family who have gone through cancer or are going through cancer themselves and don't just want to sit down and talk, but get outside with other guys and use that camaraderie as a form of therapy instead."
Mandy is inviting anyone who has an interest in gardening to come forward and help maintain the garden as a community asset.
"If you have time to spare and enjoy gardening, please pop in and see us at 27 Kapiti Rd."
The Cancer Society has also had generous support from Equate Aligned Environments, Rotary Kāpiti, Wet'n'Forget, Gus Evans Nurseries and NZ Composting.
