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- Hephatha Lutheran Church in Milwaukee built their community garden on a plot of land across the street from the church. The land had formerly been home to an abandoned and roach-infested home. The congregation worked with the city to acquire the land where they now grow flowers and vegetables. Read more about Hephatha Lutheran Church and their ministries here.
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- Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Bellevue, Wash., received a grant from ELCA World Hunger to establish their community garden as a part of the congregation’s “Earthkeeping” ministry. The congregation has both a garden and an orchard where they grow apples, pears and plums. Holy Cross also keeps a blog with advice for other gardeners about when and how to plant crops for the best results. You can read their blog here.
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- Trinity Lutheran Church in Palmer, Alaska, also received an ELCA World Hunger grant to support their potato garden. The congregation partners with the Next Step Day School, a school for young adults with disabilities, to maintain the garden and to donate the potato harvest to local organizations that can distribute the potatoes to those in need. Read more about Trinity’s potato garden here.
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- St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church in Racine, Wis., built their garden on the site of a former onion farm. The fruits and vegetables they grow are donated to local families and food pantries and sold at a weekly farmers market hosted in the congregation’s parking lot. “We make our own soup, jams, jelly, pickles, pickled beets,” says Mark Trinklein, the garden coordinator. “If somebody comes in a wheelchair and can’t shop on their feet, we give them a bouquet of flowers.”
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- The Garden of Hope at Salem Lutheran Church in Flint, Mich., was awarded an international award for being a place of peace from potential violence. Located in a rough, inner-city neighborhood, the garden is open to the public, and anyone is welcome to go inside and take home as many vegetables as they need. Read more about the Garden of Hope here.
