Today’s guest post comes from Kathi and Steve Genett, HRBC members and organizers of the Wren’s Nest Community Garden and free pantry.
Greetings!
We absolutely love and cherish our faith family at Huguenot Road Baptist Church. We are passionately engaged in the Vision Process through active service on multiple teams. We share our walk of faith in service to Jesus Christ as a married couple.
Service to others through God has always been important to our entire family. The reason we serve others is because Jesus Christ was the ultimate servant. We honor him by striving to live up to the example provided for us.
The Wrens Nest Community Garden began when we felt personally called by God to serve others by providing free food.
In accord with scripture, Hebrews 13:16 “Don’t neglect to do what is good and to share, for God is pleased with such sacrifices.”
Many church members are aware of the Wrens Nest Community Garden created last year at our home. The garden serves as a Mission in Fellowship with HRBC and as an Outreach to anyone in need of fresh produce during the growing season. The garden has received donations, and volunteers from members at Huguenot Road Baptist Church. It was adopted by the church last year initially as an extension of the Fellowship Team. Since then, donations to the garden have come from Fellowship, Missions with support from the Outreach Pillar team.
Last year many people stopped to say “thanks” or left cards and notes. Following my catastrophic burn accident last August, we were able to keep the garden going and fulfill our commitment by providing free produce daily throughout October until the growing season ended.
This year with more garden space, more raised beds, an earlier start to planting and utilizing different techniques, we have created greater harvest potential. We are more than a month ahead of last year in delivering food to the free stand.
The prior year’s the success of the garden was measured in the produce grown and harvested, then given away free . Nearly everything we picked and put out was taken the same day as it was placed on the stand. Word spread and families came to know they could depend on a little bit of help from the free garden stand.
We also measure the success of the efforts by how others have been inspired to contribute. Last year, people began dropping off excess produce from their own gardens to share with others, this year that generous spirit continues.
A teaching garden was created close to the street and consists of a Three Sisters Garden (Ancient Native American companion planting techniques to raise corn, beans and squash). The HRBC Youth Group and Cub Scout Pack 1892 have participated in different stages of the teaching garden area.
Another part of the promotion of the garden as a resource has been creating a public social media presence and building awareness. We highlight HRBC’s involvement on the social media page. The more people that know about the garden, the greater the impact made.
The upcoming WWBT Channel 12 “Acts of Kindness” news segment should increase awareness and delivery of food to those in need.
This past January we started a Free Little Pantry to extend the mission of the Wren’s Nest Community Garden by offering shelf-stable food to anyone in need.
Today, the fully stocked Free Little Pantry sits side-by-side with the Free Garden Stand. Church members have kindly donated food, and grocery store gift cards to this pantry which have helped us maintain this mission in service to others.
This is just a part of our personal story and our walk of faith. We believe that anyone can make a difference by following the example and word of Jesus Christ. Furthermore, we earnestly assert that everyone’s individual loving actions can serve as discipleship to bring others to the Lord.
With Blessings,
Kathi and Steve Genett