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Seeing Hand Association Greenhouse Is Growing Opportunity in Wheeling

Photo Provided Posing in front of the newly constructed Edelman Garden greenhouse are, from left, Karen Haught, Seeing Hand Association executive director; Tiffany Curtis, West Virginia Women Work Program coordinator; Jennifer Danielson, recent graduate from Wellsburg; Suelynn Howe, recent graduate from Moundsville; and Meredith Browning-Sterling, Edelman Garden manager.

The Seeing Hand Association and the West Virginia Women Work Step-Up for Women Program teamed up recently to build a greenhouse at the association’s Edelman Garden site on Wheeling Island.

Funds for the greenhouse were granted to Seeing Hand from the Elizabeth Stifel Kline Foundation.

“The greenhouse was a great community project for our first group of Step-Up for Women graduates in Wheeling,” said Tiffany Curtis, West Virginia Women Work Program coordinator. “We enjoyed working with the Seeing Hand Association staff.”

“We are very excited about adding a greenhouse to our garden site,” said association Executive Director Karen Haught. “It is going to be beneficial to start plants from harvested seeds during the winter months. Our employees really enjoy the seeding part after the fall harvest. As long as the weather is decent, we will be able to work in the greenhouse during the winter months now. We are very grateful to the Elizabeth Stifel Kline Foundation for the funding to complete this project.”

The statewide work program’s mission is to help women enter and advance in jobs that will lead to economic self-sufficiency for themselves and their families. The primary focus of the organization is to help women explore, train and secure employment in nontraditional occupations.

“Our Step-Up Program is 12 weeks,” said Curtis. “We currently train out of the ironworkers building in Wheeling. This is the first group of graduates in Wheeling. They are very excited to begin their construction careers. It is great training to work with agencies and groups on projects within the community.”

The blind vertical urban garden became a reality five years ago. The land was donated on South Broadway Street in 2014 by the Edelman Family. It has become a collaborative project for community groups and businesses, such as Orrick and Williams Energy, who seek service projects for their employees. Wheeling Jesuit University provides students on a regular basis to help plant, weed and harvest. The University’s Immersion Program brings students from around the country into the garden each year.

Edelman Garden has also become an educational outreach partner with area schools and youth programs. The garden is used as a teaching tool for young people to learn about community gardening as well as witness the challenges and successes of the blind and visually impaired.

Ohio County’s WVU Extension Office has been a resource in providing master gardener training and information when needed on maintaining the garden. This summer, the Extension Office added the Edelman Garden as a site for 4-H training and education for interested kids in Ohio County.

The garden also continues to be an educational resource and therapeutic site for other social service agencies with the hope of expanding this program over the next few years.

“We added concrete sidewalks this summer to make it easier for disabled individuals to navigate the garden,” Haught said. “We hope that this will encourage agencies and groups to visit our beautiful garden when in season.”

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