Carriage Inn residents, family members, staff, and members of the local community came together for a special gardening and beautification project, Monday, April 22. The project was part of the Katy senior living community's celebratory Earth Day efforts to enhance residents’ outdoor spaces and garden beds.

In the fall, the community’s raised planter boxes were repaired and updated with the help of Boy Scout Troop #209 of Katy, which prepared them for easy and accessible spring planting. With warmer weather now here, members of the community took full advantage of the Earth Day call to action, sharing time, energy, and resources to ensure a clean and beautiful courtyard space for memory care residents.

Family members Scott Griffin and Maggie Conn were thrilled to be part of the project and excited to see the finished space. “The flowers have already added so much color to the patio,” shared Griffin.

“Everyone had a great time planting,” said Carriage Inn driver, Tony Conde. “The flowers are awesome and Carriage Inn residents did most of the work. It was really a great idea.”

With 37 bags of garden soil, the community planted a few favorite vegetables, herbs, and annuals, including sweet banana peppers, basil, bell peppers, rosemary, cherry tomatoes, petunias, vincas, periwinkles, and marigolds.

Resident Beverly Harriman was delighted. “The flowers are beautiful.”

“The weather was great; it was a great day to do something like this,” said resident, Bob Hodge.

Residents will have opportunities for tending to the garden beds in the coming weeks and sharing the harvest with Carriage Inn Chef Amanda Garrison, who often incorporates fresh garden produce on the menu whenever possible, especially in the summer months.

“We are grateful for the many helping hands who came together to help with this project and look forward to enjoying this space in the weeks to come.” said Carriage Inn Executive Director Tony Rivas.

Carriage Inn Katy offers independent living, assisted living, and memory care options for older adults to live life to the fullest in a manner that best suits their interests and desires. The community is located at 1400 Katy-Flewellen Road, Katy, TX. For more information about senior living options and life at Carriage Inn Katy, visit us at www.cardinalbay.org or contact Tony Rivas at 281-392-2800 or trivas@cardinalbay.org. Locally owned, Carriage Inn is a Cardinal Bay community managed by The Long Hill Company, a subsidiary of United Methodist Homes, a non-profit senior living provider organization with a 150-year history of caring.