Month: June 2019

Creation Justice Ministries

Image courtesy of creationjustice.org

Creation Justice Ministries is a grassroots organization that works to support ecumenical creation care. Born from the National Council of Churches USA, this group has a long history of advocating for creation justice on local and national levels. You can lean about this organization and their campaigns, and you can access their resources on their website.

To be connected click here.

You can also stay connected with creation justice ministries on Facebook by clicking here.

Caring for Creation: Corner of Creation (Madison Christian Community)

Madison Christian Community offers a number of helpful resources for faith communities. One of the items is a “study-action” program that can support communities in reclaiming their sense of place. It is called “Caring for Creation: Corner of Creation.”

Image courtesy of madisonchristiancommunity.org

To connect with Madison Christian Community click here. To be connected directly to a free pdf of this resource click here.

Madison Christian Community

Image courtesy of madisonchristiancommunity.org

Madison Christian Community is the community created by Community of Hope, UCC and Advent Lutheran Church, ELCA. They have made environmental care and action a major cornerstone of their mission. Their church website is a wonderful resource for many congregations who are looking for success stories for implementing creation care into one’s own community.

To connect with this community click here.

Let All Creation Praise

Image courtesy of letallcreationpraise.org

Let All Creation Praise is a website maintained by Nick Utphall a pastor in Madison, WI; Susan Zencka, a pastor in Stevens Point, WI; Alydia Smith, programing coordinator for the United Church of Canada; Leah Schade, a professor of preaching and worship at Lexington Theological Seminary (KY), and David Rhoads, director of Lutherans restoring Creation. The website has many resources for worship, and they are an advocate for supporting the Season of Creation which is an opportunity to add this season of four Sundays celebrating creation and the creator to the traditional church year.

You can connect to their website here or connect via facebook here.

 

Baltimore, Ohio Community Gardens

Image courtesy of lancastereaglegazette.com

A 2017 article written by Robert Badgeley and published by the Lancaster Eagle Gazette shares the success of the Baltimore Community Gardens sponsored by Faith Lutheran Church in Baltimore, Ohio. Extra produce is donated to the local Baltimore Food Pantry.

 

For more information on the Baltimore Community Gardens click here.

 

Toledo GROWs

Image courtesy of toledogrows.org

Toledo GROWs supports more than 125 community gardens by providing education, materials, volunteers, and tools to local community gardens, including faith-based community gardens. They also operate a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) available to local Toledo residents. In addition to the support they give to community gardens, they also offer workshops and programming to the larger Northwest Ohio community.

To learn more about Toledo GROWs click here.

 

Ohio State Offers Free Gardening Help to Faith-based Organizations to Increase Urban Agriculture

An article written in 2015 by Tracy Turner for the College of Food Agricultural and Environmental studies covers a 2015 workshop led by OSU Extension, a part of the Ohio State University community, for faith leaders on creating community gardens. For those looking to grown the involvement of the community beyond their faith community, this article is an example of a local university connecting with faith communities around community gardens.

To read the article click here.

Derbyshire Place Community Garden

Image courtesy of Derbyshireplace.org

Not only do more traditionally organized faith communities create community gardens, but Derbyshire Place is an example of a faith-based community center that is also getting involved in community gardening.

Breaking ground in 2019, the goal of this community garden is to increase accessibility to fresh fruits and vegetables for families who may have difficulty affording fresh produce at the grocery store. Leaders also hope it will give an opportunity for inter-generational community conversation.

To learn more about this community garden, click here.

 

 

Faith Presbyterian Community Garden

Image courtesy of Sybil Lee via Faith Presbyterian Facebook Group

Faith Presbyterian is involved in many service and mission programs in Myrtle Beach where they are located. Their service work includes a community garden. They use the produce of this garden to support those who experience food insecurity in the Myrtle Beach area and to connect with God as creator. One of the ways that they share information about their community garden is through a Facebook page. Facebook pages or groups can be a great resource for faith communities who are beginning their own community gardens too.

To connect with Faith Presbyterian click here. To see their facebook group click here.

PIN Garden Ministry: Asbury United Methodist Church

Image courtesy of asburyohio.org

The PIN Garden Ministry at Asbury United Methodist Church was started in 2007 to provide fresh produce to People In Need, a service organization in Delaware County. It is tended to by parishioners and intentionally includes children in the maintenance of the garden as a way to extend youth ministry into the outdoor classroom.

To learn more about the PIN Garden Ministry click here.