It’s the people who make Martineau Gardens such a special place. With Christmas and a new year coming up, we’re looking back at some of the wonderful memories we’ve made over the years.
Seeing the “Circle of Martineau” in action
Jane has been at Martineau Gardens for over 15 years, starting as a volunteer and now working part-time in the office.
“We had a young woman who came to the gardens deep in the trauma of multiple bereavements. She spent every Friday doing therapeutic horticulture with us, which she said led to her experiencing the colour coming back into her life. She really blossomed before our eyes, from someone who was struggling with unimaginable loss and grief, into the still grieving, but positive and exuberant woman she was.
“After six months, she felt sufficiently confident and supported by the friends she had made at Martineau to apply for a job working with young children. She was offered the job and accepted – with the agreement that she didn’t have to work on her Martineau day, of course! She knew that coming to the gardens was an important part of her ongoing recovery and self-care.
“She kept in touch with us as her life moved on, and then one day she brought the young people she works with to visit the gardens and share in her love of this space!
It was so moving and I was inspired to see how, with the support of the gardens and the other wonderful volunteers, her life had turned around from a place of sadness to being filled with joy and hope again. It really demonstrated for me the circle of Martineau!”
A good day at the gardens
Matt joined us last year as Therapeutic Horticulture Lead and has been working with our volunteers across the week.
“It’s great to see the volunteers really enjoying their sessions in the garden and whatever they’re doing they find enjoyment in it. Earlier this year I was working with a group to harvest beans on the veg plot, including a generally non-verbal volunteer. I’d been working with them for a while but never had more than a nod.
“We had so many beans that he turned to me to instruct me that we needed a bigger basket. It might seem like a small thing, but it was huge that we’d made enough of a connection that he felt at ease to talk to me. He’s still not chatty but I get the odd sentence from him, and a good chuckle if I do anything unintentionally hilarious, like dropping a tool or tripping up.
“The people are what makes this job so rewarding. Seeing volunteers doing something they love, especially when they have lots of challenges to deal with for the rest of the week, is uplifting. Lots of them tell us what a great day they’ve had, and it’s not just the tea and biscuits they like, but being part of a team and something they’re really proud of.”
If you’d like to help us continue the work we do at Martineau this festive season, please consider making a donation here.
The gardens will be closed from Friday 20 December and will be reopen in the new year on Thursday 2 January. We would love to see you to the gardens in 2025, pop in for a cup of tea, a nice walk and a warm welcome. We will be open 10am-4pm Monday to Friday, and from 12-3pm on Saturdays.