AKRON, Ohio - A community garden just outside downtown Akron is more than a place to grow food - it's a way to stave off depression for Bhutanese refugees and teach their children skills the families had handed down for generations.

Shanti Community Farms in North Hill is a Bhutanese-run nonprofit co-founded in 2017 by Bhakta Rizal and Tom Crain. The men, who teach immigrant children at Akron's Imagine School, were introduced two years ago at a local Bhutanese festival. Crain also serves on the board of the West Hill Community Development Corp.

Akron is a federally designated resettlement community for refugees from around the world.

In 2016, the International Institute in North Akron, which runs the resettlement program, resettled 801 refugees here from 10 countries, with more than 320 from Bhutan. Akron has offered haven to refugees under the program since about 2008.

Services offered through the institute are heavy on education, with employment assistance and legal services also a focus. Refugees settle mainly in North Akron, in close proximity to the institute.

Even so, refugees who come here leave behind a lifestyle that's difficult to duplicate in an urban setting, especially the Bhutanese, who are farmers, Crain said.

"There's a high percentage who are depressed," he said.

What's more, many adult Bhutanese who in the past received little education in their own language, have trouble learning English, making it difficult to interact in their new communities. Resettlement communities across the United States are grappling with depression in their refugee communities.

"Their livelihood was farming. There were no offices, no businesses," Rizal said. "They depended totally on agriculture."

In its first season, Shanti Farms, which means "peace" in Bhutanese, invited Bhutanese families to farm a double city lot on Tallmadge Avenue, growing Asian favorites such as watermelon, beans, cauliflower, tomatoes, onions, spinach and okra.

The produce is sold at local markets, which this year will include the new North Akron Market, set to run weekly from May 5 through Sept. 29 at the nearby Exchange House.

The Exchange House, developed by the Knight and Better Block foundations, serves as a central location for foreign-born residents to gather for all types of programming, from health clinics to concerts and plays.

Just cross the street from its main farm, Shanti Farms owns a second city lot planned to serve more families eager to participate. The group is seeking land outside the city to grow livestock to send to market.

"This brings them out of their homes," Rizal said. "They get to play in the dirt."

For Bhutanese youth, students from North High School and Jennings Middle School participate in an array of programs at Shanti Farms. Workshops for students of all ages teach basic plant care, plant nutrition, composting and vermiculture -- gardening and composting with worms.

"The students are very interested and very excited," Rizal said. "We have to connect with the youth. They have [farming] in their blood."

This year, a $5,000 Akron Community Foundation grant will support Shanti Farms' youth garden and summer camp programs, while a partnership with St. Vincent-St.-Mary High School provided space to plant seedlings in preparation for the growing season.

If Shanti Farms can secure grazing lands within 30 minutes from Akron, 10 to 12 more families will be able to participate in its farming programs.

For information, go to Shanti Community Farms website. You can also donate at the Shanti Farms Gofundme site here.

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