The second story is about a small church in Ottawa called Trinity Church of the Nazarene.  In April, we hosted a community gardening workshop called “The Plot Thickens” at this church.  The modest attendance was a bit discouraging but I was later joyfully surprised by something that goes beyond numbers.  This workshop inspired Christian communities to create gardens on their property and thereby engage their community, especially those with more vulnerable food needs.

The workshop that we conducted spurred on the Nazarene Church to build a 7000 square foot food garden in a high traffic area of their neighbourhood.  Members of their community regularly stop by to garden, watch, pick food or ask questions.  Listen to the words of the pastor:

“Well, we are at the end of our “trial year” of community gardening, and it seems that it was a great success . . . and A Rocha was a big part of it. Thanks again for being part of what we did. Your seminar early this year was the impetus that got us going. I’ve probably already told you that I thought that the seminar would spur discussion and that by now we’d be talking about how to get things going next year — little did I know that there would be such interest that we’d “jump right in”! (Pastor Frank)

I am excited about the impact they are having in Ottawa because it gives me hope for the future of A Rocha in Ontario! For all our friends in Ontario, I am sure that it will not be long before you are getting your hands in the Ontario dirt with A Rocha.