Rain Gardens to the Rescue

Building the garden was an enjoyable experience as it brought out my neighbors and we were able to work on a community project together. Some neighbors are thinking about getting a rain garden of their own!
-E.B. Jordan, 2018

I have wanted a rain garden for 10 years and in June of this year, I was finally able to join Rain Gardens to the Rescue… Each class session helped me to learn why rain gardens are an important addition to any landscape, how they support pollinators and birds, and how rain gardens can help mitigate stormwater runoff. I also learned how to calculate a rain garden area, the best rain garden plants native to Michigan, and different ways to design my rain garden. Thank you to all of the volunteers and to the wonderful instructors, Elayne and Jaclyn! I am excited to see my rain garden blooming for years to come.
-Angela Lugo-Thomas, 2022

I greatly enjoyed meeting people with different backgrounds coming together for the same cause and helping each other out during planting days. It was a win-win, all the way around. Not just for houses of worship and residents but for the Rouge River too.
-Tom Scherf, 2018

Participating in the rain garden program this year was meaningful in so many ways. It was great meeting fellow Detroiters engaged and invested in improving the infrastructure of the city, in small but significant ways. Second, it felt so good to focus on something other than COVID, working outside and getting our hands dirty. The classes were incredibly informative and inspiring, making me want to install a second rain garden in 2022. Working with the staff from Sierra Club and Friends of the Rouge was so effortless; they made the hard work of digging up the sod fun (well, sort of) and always had such positive attitudes. They were responsive and always supportive and encouraging. Last, I am truly appreciative of the City’s commitment to improving the neighborhoods and providing Detroiters with opportunities and tools to improve our specific neighborhood. It was a great experience from start to finish.
-Carla Groh, 2021

…Where neighbors look out and help one of another. Now Rain Gardens to the Rescue is capturing those days again throughout the city with the same impact. Those days are coming back again and neighborhoods and resident’s can turn their yards into a garden of hope.
-Sonja Hill, 2016

Installing a rain garden during a ‘500-year flood’ gave me a deeper appreciation for the project. At first I was focused on the benefits it has for pollinators and was excited to have one less section of grass to cut. I knew about the relief rain gardens have on the city’s stormwater infrastructure but this was made even clearer to me when you see the damage flooding has on homes and pollution in our lakes and rivers. The course itself was very educational. I believe it balanced support with allowing you to design and own the plans yourself. I was very impressed by the access to materials and tools, especially the wide variety of native plants to choose from. I look forward to seeing my rain garden fill in and bloom in the next couple of years. A big thanks to Friends of the Rouge and Sierra Club for the resources and engaging staff that made this project possible.
-Alicia Martinez, 2021