The birth of the ‘Recovery Garden’ comes from Project Leader, Adrian Perron, who believed that growing a garden was in itself, a form of therapy for his clients suffering from addiction. The project was funded $2,000 during the 24 Hour Citizen Project in 2016.  Crops produced from the garden benefit St. Joseph’s Diner, whose focus is to feed the hungry.

The St. Joseph Diner Garden Project is a collaborative project between Catholic Services of Acadiana and Acadiana Recovery Center.  This project has a goal of taking the garden that is at Catholic Services of Acadiana and redeveloping it into a sustainable garden that provides produce that can be used to feed the homeless population of Lafayette, Louisiana. Currently, the garden is in a state of disrepair and needs the aid of the community. The St. Joseph Diner Garden was built in 2012. There are approximately sixteen planter boxes, as well as, fruit trees planted along the perimeter. St. Joseph Diner serves over 100,000 meals a year to the homeless living on the streets and to those living in the shelter. The St. Joseph Diner is open 364 days a year.