Staff and participants at Woodwynn Farms launched a year-round market over the weekend.
Well over a dozen people attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the grand opening on Saturday.
The farm, located in Central Saanich, has two large greenhouses with a five-acre garden to grow fruits and vegetables.
The food has traditionally been used to feed residents, but now it’ll also be sold to the local community.
The initiative will help finance programming at the farm.
“We think we’ve developed possibly Vancouver Island’s most beautiful farm market and it’s a day that a lot of hard work has kind of culminated into a pretty special opportunity,” said Richard LeBlanc, founder and executive director.
Participants played an integral role in repurposing the 1940’s barn that houses the market.
One man who’s been at Woodwynn for about a year said the farm gave him hope when he needed it most.
“It changed my life in a way of getting my spirit back and my strength back and when I got here I felt I was too old to move on and I was at the end,” Keith Prosser said. “It makes you feel good, it makes you feel like I really accomplished something.”
Woodwynn Farms is a 193-acre organic farm and therapeutic community for the homeless.
The market is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
