Rain Gardens to the Rescue

Thanks to amazing donors like you, along with funding from The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Friends of the Rouge has awarded nine (9) rain gardens to those who participated in the 2024 five-part course.  This year, the program continues to reach new residents in Detroit’s Southwest neighborhood, the City of River Rouge, and Dearborn’s Southend neighborhood. Friends of the Rouge will also be holding an additional workshop series for Dearborn Southend residents with funding from the Cleveland Cliffs Foundation along with awarding five (5) more rain gardens to residents in the community.  These neighborhoods are disproportionately harmed by increased flooding events and environmental pollution from nearby industry. With your generous donations, even more gardens and native plants can grow in these communities to help reduce flooding, keep our rivers clean, and keep these blocks beautiful.

Throughout the course in June, participants learn what rain gardens are, their purpose, how they function, how to design a rain garden of their own, and how to do hands-on rain garden maintenance.  The class of 11 community members have been very excited and engaged to learn about rain gardens and connect with fellow like-minded community members taking actionable steps towards cleaner rivers.  At the final workshop on June 29th, attendees will present their rain garden designs to the class that will manage water and enhance their property with native plants.

We continue to get updates from past Rain Gardeners who are falling in love with their garden again each growing season with more flowers blooming, more water managed, and more pollinators visiting. Emma, our all-star teacher at Thirkell School in Detroit, who received a rain garden in 2023, has been so happy to see all the life the garden has brought. She is particularly excited for the two pawpaw trees planted in the middle are growing and enjoying their space in the garden. She has been working hard to add seating and signage around their gardens for the community to enjoy the food and flowers. The students enjoy spending time in the garden before and after school and even now when school is out for summer, they love to stop by and see the flowers blooming. They have also been expanding their nearby pollinator habitat garden and monarch waystation with students to help support more butterflies and pollinators. She is so grateful for the thriving garden of her dreams that came true by Friends of the Rouge and supporters like you!

One of this year’s class participants, Saife, who lives in Dearborn’s Southend community, has been very interested in rain gardens and have been following their development in the area for the past few years. Saife’s family home has flooded several times since 2014, and his hope is that a rain garden will serve as both a functional and beautification project for the home and neighborhood. “I first remember coming across the concept while in undergraduate studies where Wayne State University students in 2019 established the around campus. Since then, I have been very interested in establishing them on my home. Unfortunately, due to cost constraints, I have not been able to. With this opportunity to further learn about them and be assisted with supplies, I look forward to having the opportunity in establishing a rain garden.” We look forward transforming his front yard with a garden he designed in August. With the help of volunteers garden recipients recruit for the installation, program staff will supply all tools, materials, and plants to make their dream garden a reality.

With increasingly frequent, heavy rainstorms, we need your support more than ever to help our communities stay healthy by managing stormwater. Thank you for your continued support of Rain Gardens to the Rescue!

Links:

• Learn more about the Rain Gardens to the Rescue program
• U of M: Dearborn Southend Environmental Justice Case Study
• "Keep Growing" with the Thirkell School Food and Flower Garden