Good Shepherd

Home of True Conversions
(submitted by a Good Shepherd P-Patch gardener) 

Thwack!! Sproing! Thwack! Sproing! Tennis sounds reverberated around the site. Then it was Bang! Thud! Bang! Thud! Bulldozers broke up the old concrete courts. Grin! Sigh! Dig, dig, dig. Those are the sounds you hear now at the Good Shepherd P-Patch.

Many years ago, the Good Shepherd Center was a home for girls. In the mid-seventies, the Sisters of the Good Shepherd sold the site to the City for a new Wallingford park. The Wallingford Community Council and many neighborhood activists were involved in site design; they wanted their park to reflect their neighborhood soul. They wanted to ensure that an urban agricultural center would be part of the new development. Their visions were grand; they included a greenhouse, a teaching center, and a community garden. We can thank them for their insight, as all of those activities come together at Good Shepherd every day.

The magical Tilth Garden, greenhouse and teaching center compliment the P-Patches nestled nearby. You can hear the laughter of discovery from the Tilth Pee Wee Children's Garden. The surrounding park abounds with activities, silent Tai Chi sessions, weddings, picnics and chamber music in the gazebo. The sound of gardeners sharing tall vegetables tales bounces off the Good Shepherd Center walls. Gone is Thwack, Sproing, Bang and Thud. Those sounds have been replaced by peace. Or is that peas?