Agricultural News
NRCS Brings "D" Therapy to Oklahoma
Wed, 31 Oct 2012 14:58:13 CDT
Ron Hilliard, Oklahoma NRCS Oklahoma State Conservationists and his staff have added a new dimension to the NRCS Mission of "Helping People Help the Land." "Helping the Land Help the People" might be more appropriate in this case. It all started from a national USDA incentive called the "Peoples' Garden". The Peoples' Garden is a USDA initiative designed to encourage "grass roots" efforts to develop local projects that grow healthy food, people, and communities.
For many years, Hilliard has been concerned about the elderly rural Americans who live in retirement homes and assisted living centers. He feels that they have something important missing in their lives. They have lost touch with the land. He said, "Those folks who were farmers and ranchers and other rural or even city residents who cultivated gardens and flower beds during their working life likely became separated from the dirt on the day they moved to assisted housing. They may have a huge "miss" in their lives." He said, "I recognized this "miss" as I watched my mother and members of my own family age and retire, as well as co-workers and friends."
He was determined that these people should have opportunities to re-unite with the land. He came up with the "D" Therapy concept. "D" Therapy stands for dirt and direct sunlight. Everyone now calls it Hilliard's "D" Therapy. His vision was that NRCS would engage its conservation partners, farm supply businesses, local gardeners, and others to work directly with interested retirement and assisted living centers to facilitate the development of handicapped accessible gardens and flower beds that could be cared for by the residents.
An assisted living center in North Central Oklahoma grasped the vision and offered to be the model. Mr. Hilliard put the plan into motion. The Garfield County Conservation District led the local effort and the team added partners that included: Lowes Home Improvement, Dolese Brothers Concrete, Senior Resources and Benefits, and a host of others who donated time, money, and materials. Curtis Morris of Lowes in Enid, said "This was a perfect project for our Lowes Heroes Program. Each year our store selects a project that will make a difference in our community and our employees volunteer a day of their time to work on that project." Morris said, "At Lowes, we believe that community involvement extends beyond the boundaries of the traditional retail setting. We like to help with programs that make our neighborhood better places to live." The raised beds, rain barrel, soil, arbor, fertilizer, and plants were quickly put in place with over 40 volunteers showing up to help. The residents were amazed at how fast it came together and many watched every step, even offering suggestions to the volunteers.
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