LuAnn Martin, of rural Wimbledon, sought and received permission to create the green space from the community board running the grocery store about five years ago.
'I said I'd like to do a project with the vacant lot that the store owns next door, and they approved it,' Martin said.
And with a lot of effort, both her own and from other community members, Martin built a small garden out of the vacant lot.
Now the garden includes a gravel pathway, a small patio with tables and chairs, a couple of evergreens, a weeping cherry tree, shrubs and many, many flowers - daffodils, tulips, lilies, daisies and delphiniums.
'I'd be working and people would come up and visit with me, and offer to do something with me ... and then they'd go home and do something to their garden or their yard,' Martin said. '... so people got into making things a little bit nicer.'
They also started giving her a bit of cash here and there to help with improvements. And then they started turning up in the garden, reading a book on a bench or eating lunch at the table.
'So I thought it was all very nice, but I wanted to do some very big things to it,' Martin said.
Her plans include putting a door between the restaurant and the garden, so that people can easily walk outside to have dinner in the green space. Adding a pergola for some shade would also help the space be a little more congenial for summer dining.
She also wants to put hard paths down into the garden, replacing the current gravel paths and easing the way for people with disabilities.
The grocery store's board approved the project, which will cost a minimum of $7,000, Martin said - adding that if she could raise $10,000 'I can make it nicer.'
She's already raised about $1,000 for the projects, and plans to continue working toward the garden improvements.
'I built it because I like things to be nice, but I also like the feeling it gives you when a community gets involved, and when a community uses something like that, and when they can take pride in something on main street,' Martin said.
Part of her fundraiser involves selling paver bricks for $25 that will be used in the garden. They'll include people's names on it, and can be bought to honor friends or family members.
'I've just begun with the bricks. If I can sell enough bricks and get enough donations I can do a really nice improvement to the gardens,' Martin said.
She's also going to have a bake sale and garden sale from about 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. June 7 at the garden itself, at the Wimbledon Community Grocery Store.
'We will have some tables and chairs, and a canopy set up so that people can come and have a cup of coffee and a kuchen if they'd like, or they can just come and buy,' Martin said.
Donations can also be made to the garden project at Bank Forward in Jamestown or Wimbledon.
'I think it'll be really nice when it's all worked out,' said Anne Lloyd, a cashier at the Wimbledon Community Grocery and Café. '... in the heat of the summer, it's a little bit too hot, so getting ... an umbrella out there would help. And I think it would be used a lot then.'
Anyone with questions on the project can call Martin at 269-3784.
Sun reporter Kari Lucin can be reached at (701) 952-8453 or by email at klucin@jamestownsun.com
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