Matthew 25:35–40
“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink…Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”
Sugar Land Methodist Church is celebrating the 40th anniversary of its Jim Huff Memorial Community Garden by donating 2,000+ pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables that church members grew this year. All of the fruits and vegetables were donated to the food pantry at the East Ft. Bend County Human Needs Ministry. The pantry primarily distributes canned and dry goods, so fresh produce is a welcome blessing.
A single-row garden which started out as an Eagle Scout Project in 1985 has grown in size over the years to include ten rows, each forty-feet in length, plus a few shorter rows. Pear, fig, apple, and plum trees line the edges of the garden.
“It is surprising how much food you can grow on a very small plot of land”, said Kip Johnson, who helps coordinate the nine church members who volunteer on Tuesday and Thursday mornings to work in the garden. Volunteers grow and harvest organic produce year-round, including cabbage, beets, broccoli, carrots, radishes, onions, and turnips during the fall; collard greens, kale and lettuce during the late winter and spring; tomatoes, peppers, green beans, okra, sweet potatoes, and eggplant from the spring until early summer; and okra, eggplant, and peppers during the heat of summer.
The local community is very generous in their support of the garden. Urban Harvest and Ft Bend Master Gardeners donate plants, organic fertilizer, and gardening expertise. Sugar Creek Garden Club has supported the garden with financial gifts for a number of years. These funds help with needed purchases, such as wheelbarrows and garden tools. Church members are also generous, donating grass clipping and leaves, even old pumpkins after Halloween, that the volunteers turn into mulch.
Imagine the amount of fresh produce that the church could provide if every congregation had a community garden. Does your congregation have extra land that isn’t being used? Perhaps it is time to put in a church garden? A plot as small as 10’ X 10’ can grow a surprising amount of produce. If your congregation doesn’t have excess of property, perhaps a church member owns a vacant lot that could be used to feed the hungry.
If your church would like to learn more about starting your own community garden, Sugar Land Methodist would be happy to help you get started.
For more information, contact, Jimmy Fenwick, Director of Missions at jimmy.fenwick@sugarlandmethodist.org.
