Spring 2023 Reflection at The Commonwealth
Spring 2023 was in full swing at The Commonwealth. From preparation of the Community Farm for the upcoming growing season to production flows in the Work-Shop, to weekly civic arts activities in Civic Arts Church; the SWF team has been working hard. We welcomed groups for onsite immersions, launched Wellness Wednesdays for the 2023 season, and hosted a photoshoot in Meeting House. We invite you to read more about spring happenings at The Commonwealth.
Spring Preparation at The Commonwealth
Spring in Chicago was fairly cool despite a few weeks of unseasonably warm weather. The cooler weather provided more time to prepare the Community Farm for the upcoming growing season. The team re-staked the rows, refreshed the farm by moving tons of compost soil and woodchips across the farm, and seeded thousands of plants for the farm, community gardens, and Seedling Market. This year, we also rebuilt trellises for our cucumber seedlings and created fresh signs for the rows on the Community Farm.
Beyond the Community Farm, we have also been preparing other spaces for the upcoming season - planting perennial plants such as tulips and herbs, clearing trash and debris from across the entire site, and trimming trees. SWF also reclaimed and activated 12 additional parcels of vacant land at The Commonwealth; cleaning up, securing, and beautifying a space that is now known as The Prairie.
Wellness Wednesdays
This spring, SWF’s Wellness Wednesday ritual started early, with small groups of volunteers plugging in during March and April, well before the official launch, the first Wednesday in May. Community members jumped right in to support preparations on the Community Farm, helping us to quickly transform the site -- from weeding the rows to spreading soil and woodchips to transplanting seedlings for the upcoming seedling market. This year, we initiated a new Wellness Wednesdays ritual of including civic arts activities such as nature drawing and drying flowers for herbarium sheets. As always, each Wellness Wednesday culminates with a shared meal featuring fresh produce from the hoop houses/Community Farm. This year’s ritual of Wellness Wednesdays will continue through September. RSVP in advance is required via info@sweetwaterfoundation.com.
Seeding the Future
This year, we have continued to work with 2nd-grade students from Beasley Academic Center. The SWF team has visited their classroom monthly for in-school lessons, during which students have explored plant structures, plant life cycles, and soil. They also planted their own seeds, which they then transplanted onto the Community Farm this May. The students also engaged in Civic Arts in their classroom, creating Sankofa Living Memories Collages that are now part of a larger art installation in Civic Arts Church alongside collages created by the SWF team, community, and visitors from out of state. Students ecstatically witnessed their works of art in the Civic Arts Church gallery during their first spring visit this May!
Lake Forest College Visit
On Friday, April 21, 18 students from Lake Forest College visited The Commonwealth for a hands-on immersion as part of a course entitled Black Environmental Culture, led by Professor Brian McCammack. Professor McCammack has been connected with Sweet Water Foundation since 2020, exposing his classes and students to our work and the practice of Regenerative Neighborhood Development. The students in attendance were primarily environmental science majors and/or interested in environmental justice work. During their visit, they were immersed in hands-on work to ground their studies; literally moving tons of soil in the Community Garden to refill the garden beds, deconstructing pallets, and engaging Civic Arts in Civic Arts Church. The experience was meaningful and re-rooted the students into what environmental justice really means.
Meeting House Photo Shoot
On Tuesday, April 25, Sweet Water Foundation welcomed artist Meagan McNeal to The Commonwealth for a photo shoot in Meeting House. Meagan has performed at SWF’s Juneteenth Celebrations in the past and reached out to the team to share that she is working on recording a new album called Greenhouse. She was inspired by the greenhouse spaces at The Commonwealth - including Thought Barn, Hoop Houses, Work-Shop, and Meeting House. She shared that greenhouses, with their transparent frames, let light and nutrients in, creating an atmosphere for plants to bloom. In the same way, she believes that people, through transparency, can create an atmosphere for blooming; our gifts, talents, and purpose. Meeting House was a perfect location for her album photo shoot on April 25. Stay tuned for her upcoming album release- June 25th at City Winery, and images from the photoshoot to be released soon!
