Tennessee Hospital Needs You: Volunteer Garden Teams

When you're battling cancer and can barely get out of bed, the last thing you can manage is watering your garden at home.

That's why volunteers at Cookeville Regional Medical Center are creating something beautiful for patients who miss that simple joy. Groups across Tennessee's Upper Cumberland region are maintaining butterfly gardens, memorial pathways, and flower beds across the hospital campus.

John Bell, Executive Director of the CRMC Foundation, said patients notice. Families going through treatment have told him how much the outdoor gardens mean to them during their darkest days.

"We've had several mention how much they appreciate seeing those flowers outside the entryway because they are unable to keep up with their own gardens at their own house while they are going through treatment," Bell said. "It's just not something they got the energy to do."

The hospital features three main garden areas. A butterfly garden sits outside the cancer center, while a women's center garden and a larger memorial pathway garden facing Tennessee Tech's campus offer peaceful spots for reflection.

These aren't just pretty additions. The hospital's facilities team stays busy with equipment repairs and urgent maintenance inside the building, leaving little time for outdoor beautification projects on the sprawling campus.

The Ripple Effect

What started as basic maintenance projects has grown into something bigger. Business groups, student organizations, and community volunteers now connect with their local hospital through shared gardening work.

Bell said the need for volunteers is real, especially during spring when flowers bloom and weeds take over. Teams of 15 to 20 people can knock out needed projects in just a few hours.

The foundation welcomes groups willing to help a couple times yearly or even quarterly. Right now, they're bringing in one or two volunteer teams each month, but there's always more work than hands.

Anyone interested in joining a beautification team can reach out directly to the CRMC Foundation to get started.