Imagine delivering up to 1,000 ears of corn to a local food pantry in a single trip. Or a total of 6,000 pounds of fresh produce in a single growing season. That’s exactly what two FEC churches have been able to accomplish through their community gardens in the past few years, and they’re changing lives in the process. At Great Oaks Community Church, the garden started as a result of several volunteers joining forces to fulfill the church’s mission, “saved people serve people.” Last year, the “Garden of Giving,” as they call it, provided produce to two food pantries, and at times had enough fresh vegetables to serve four other food pantries plus a rescue mission.
Likewise, at Jacob’s Well, the garden grew out of a desire to develop a sustainable solution to hunger in the community. This year, in addition to feeding people, the garden at Jacob’s Well took on a leadership-training component with student interns, too, who were committed to stewardship, discipleship, and sustainable living. Through direct care of various garden plots, plenty of classroom/devotional reading, and leadership opportunities with young people in the church, the intern program was a huge success. In the words of Dave Berry, pastor, “the harvest this year was tough, thanks to all the rain, but the discipleship was remarkable!”
To learn more about starting a garden at your church, contact Kaye Weis at (309) 369-2439 or Lisa Garber at (309) 383-2235. And for more information about the internship at Jacob’s Well, contact John Berry at (309) 261-2919
