It takes a village to raise a greenhouse

photo credit: Jon Vos

It was truly an amazing sight. Wind gusts of up to 60km per hour weren't enough to deter 20 - 25 area men from coming to help a 'brother' repair the roof of one of his greenhouses. With spring flower sales literally around the corner, a band of loosely connected friends came out to lend a hand in resealing a portion of a greenhouse roof that blew off its arches early this morning. Hundreds of hanging baskets and large planters were threatened due to the impending cold front blowing in from the east.

On his regular morning walk-through, Mike Zwiers, owner of Garden Source Greenhouses, located on Centre Road, in Flamborough Centre, came across a sight that no greenhouse operator ever wants to witness. The roof vent which extends the full length of the greenhouse was standing straight up and taking the full force of the wind's fury. To minimize further structural damage and a greater crop loss, a quick thinking Zwiers quickly unhinged the plastic and secured any moving parts with ropes, straps - even anchoring the roof's ridge to his 30ft trailer parked on the ground.

While doing his best to "batten down the hatches", a small army of men had assembled on his property to help wherever needed. Methodically, in unison, and well orchestrated by several experienced men, the roof was repositioned with ropes and heavy equipment and the plastic was 'wire-locked' into place.

For some, Sunday afternoons are sacrosanct...a time to relax, to nap, play golf, read, or just 'chill'. But, not for those men today - they came to help a man and his family in the most critical time of their business cycle. A community of volunteers comprised of university and high school students, a veterinarian, salesmen, a financial advisor, a city manager, other local greenhouse operators, transportation specialists, an electrician, to name a few - all responded to the call for help.

It was a miracle on Centre Road. It was a convergence of volunteers helping a man and his family at a time of need. It was a moment in time when personal interests were laid aside.

There's a time for everything under the sun. Today, it was a time to build.