At the Center for Independence's Urban Garden, clients grow food while cultivating skills

With masterful precision, Malcolm Pereira trims romaine leaves and bronze fennel for a delivery to Braise restaurant , 1101 S. Second St. In addition to clipping fully grown vegetables, Pereira’s job is to put new plants into the ground and pull weeds.

Pereira, who is autistic, is one of many Milwaukee Center for Independence (MCFI) clients with physical or developmental disabilities or limiting neurological conditions. Enrolled in MCFI's LIFE Services and Brain Health program, they make weekly visits to tend the center's Urban Garden. The produce grown there is sold to partnering restaurants, such as Braise and Hot Dish Pantry, or at monthly farmer’s markets.

Located two blocks south of intersection of West Howard Avenue and South Sixth Street on Milwaukee's south side, the Urban Garden yields an impressive array of produce: kalibos and filderkraut cabbage, potatoes, garlic, cauliflower, kale, bok choy, kohlrabi.

As clients cultivate these rows of vegetation, MCFI hopes they can also grow life skills that bring them closer to living autonomously.

“They're overcoming fears that they may have had about getting dirty, or trying something that they haven't done before, and that boosts self-confidence when you can do that successfully,” said Erin Dentice, supervisor of the LIFE Services and Brain Health programs. “Just fostering as much independence as possible is always what we're going for.”

A garden accessible for all levels of mobility

Clients’ work in the garden depends on their abilities. Some, like Pereira, are mobile and can work on garden tasks alone. Others require more attention from Dentice and move in groups.

To ensure that everyone can experience the garden, the MCFI staff makes sure it is an accessible and accommodating place. This includes physical modifications, like a crushed gravel pathway and plywood floors for wheelchair users, and activities that aim to hone specific skills, such as mobility and socialization.

“I think the biggest thing is just that we find a place for everyone,” Dentice said.

Heirloom tomatoes are a specialty

While the garden yields a range of produce, from squash to luffa to basil, Dentice said the “prized possessions” are its heirloom tomatoes, including such varieties as Costoluto and Amish Paste.

But tomatoes are only a portion of the 1,000 pounds of produce that comes from the two hoop houses and outdoor garden each season.

Local restaurants Braise, Goodkind and Hot Dish Pantry buy some of the produce. In prior years, the restaurants made a monetary donation in exchange for the food. The Urban Garden made a profit of $1,000. Now, the MCFI prices the produce according to the market.

Also, people can buy Urban Garden produce at the monthly Green Corridor Farmers Market at South Sixth Street and West Norwich Avenue, a few hundred feet away from the garden. In May, sales at the farmers market raised $270, Dentice said. The remaining markets this year will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 20, Aug. 17 and Sept. 21.

According to Matt Rudman, who sources ingredients for Braise, the restaurant’s monthly purchases from the Urban Garden can range up to $1,000 worth of produce. The money raised goes back to MCFI, where it funds program supplies, such as art-class materials.

On the day of this interview, Pereira and Dentice delivered romaine and bronze fennel to Braise for use in salads and cocktails. The Urban Garden’s produce is incorporated into nearly every aspect of Braise’s offerings, from regular service menus to pastries to cocktails, Rudman said.

“A big thing that people talk about is the food miles and how far it takes the produce to get to the restaurants,” Rudman said. “That's what's really neat about working with MCFI, it's less than a mile away from the restaurant. I know that some of the produce that I have gotten from them, from the spring onions to the lettuce, the freshness of them, they last so much longer than getting it from other farms or distributors.”

The Urban Garden land is owned by Simon Landscape Co., which lets MCFI utilize the space lease-free as an in-kind donation, Dentice said.

Growing independence while growing vegetables

The Milwaukee Center for Independence, 2020 W. Wells St., is a health and social services organization that provides substance abuse care, rehabilitative support after neurological procedures, in-home personal care services and daytime programming.

In addition to the Urban Garden experience, MCFI offers a variety of programming and events, such as bowling outings, workout sessions and cooking classes. Pereira particularly enjoys feeding carrots to horses when Brain Health clients go to MKE Urban Stables for equine-assisted therapy.

Pereira, 24, joined MCFI two years ago.

Like Pereira, some of MCFI’s clients are enrolled in daylong programming. Other MCFI clients receive services for a portion of the day and also work part-time jobs.

Based on Pereira’s overall improvement and strong social skills, Dentice predicts that Pereira eventually will get a job and only need to come to MCFI part-time. This is the ultimate goal of MCFI, she said.

Last year, MCFI served close to 25,000 people in Milwaukee, according to Carrie Belsky, director of employment services. Many MCFI clients are insured by Medicaid, which makes them eligible for long-term funding. Few families pay with private insurance or pay out-of-pocket for MCFI services, Belsky said.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: At the Center for Independence's Urban Garden, clients grow food while cultivating skills