• Hear about the experiences of last year’s participants.
• Find out the first steps to begin growing food.
• Learn tips andtricks from other participants.
• Get your congregation signed up to grow food for the hungry this year!

Volunteers working on the St. Andrews Faith & Food Garden in 2009

New and returning congregations are invited to attend. We hope you will be a part of this exciting program to fight local hunger!

Monday, March 22
6:30-8:30pm
Memorial Christian Church (730 Tappan)
Light dinner will be served

Questions? Call 734-663-1870 or e-mail melihe@umich.edu

Faith and Food is back for the 2010 growing season! Faith and Food assists congregations in creating community gardens to fight local hunger. Congregations then donate 50 % of their yield to local food banks. Last year local congregations donated over 3500 lbs of fresh produce. Come to our kick-off meeting on March 22 to learn how your congregation can be involved. (Click here for more on Faith & Food.)

St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church's Faith & Food Garden

We are pleased to announce the return of the Faith and Food initiative in 2010. Once again, we are partnering with two well-known hunger relief agencies, Food Gatherers and Growing Hope, to support the development of congregational gardens to feed the hungry.

In 2009, fifteen congregations participated in the program, producing over 3500 lbs of fresh produce for the hungry in Washtenaw County. This year we are hoping for even more community involvement to make a bigger impact on addressing local hunger needs.

The 2010 program is setup to support new congregational gardens and existing congregational gardens to grow food for the hungry. Visit www.foodgatherers.org and click on “Get Growin’ for Food Gatherers!” for great resources to get started on your garden for 2010! You can also contact Food Gatherers with questions at getgrowing@foodgatherers.org or call 734-761-2796.

Click here for a Faith & Food 2010 Fact Sheet about this year’s program.

We look forward to working with you this year to get fresh, healthy produce to our neighbors in need.

UPDATE: As of May 2010, we have 25 congregations participating in Faith and Food! That’s almost double last year’s participation! Thanks to all of the volunteers who make it possible for their congregations to donate fresh, healthy, local food to the hungry in our area.

A panel of community leaders and peace activists from ICPJ task forces will discuss the policies and actions of the administration of the past year and the effect on the peace movement. Panelists will focus on ICPJ’s issue areas including climate change, Latin America, hunger, Israel/Palestine, war and disarmament, and racial & economic justice.

Date: Wednesday, January 20th
Time: 6:30-8:30pm. Join us for dessert and coffee/tea at 6:30pm, followed by panel speakers and discussion.
Location: Church of the Good Shepherd (2145 Independence Blvd., Ann Arbor). 

For more information, call (734) 663-1870 or email info@icpj.net.  Free and open to the public. Join us!

Download the poster to help spread the word.Here are the panelists for the event:

• La’Ron Williams will represent the Racial and Economic Justice task force. La’Ron is a long-term Ann Arbor resident, and a nationally recognized, award winning professional storyteller who has toured extensively presenting performances and workshops in schools, theaters, clubs, and religious institutions of all kinds. His stories are crafted to help improve literacy, promote peaceful conflict resolution, foster cooperation, encourage community, build self-esteem, and deepen our historical understanding of the ideal of American democratic inclusion. He is the author of the story “From Flint, Michigan to Your Front Door” — a part of a study curriculum used nationally by High School students to aid in examining systemic racism. Available free online through Racebridges.net;
• Ron Gregg will discuss peacemaking in Israel and Palestine for our Common Ground working group. In addition to a successful career in law and business, Ron was a key planner in the 2009 Morikawa conference on religion and peacemaking. He has also led efforts to create a sustainable development program in Nicaragua and is currently working to develop a plan to expand services to people who are homeless in Ann Arbor.
• Mary Anne Perrone will discuss human rights and justice in Latin  America
• Jesse Worker will discuss  Global Warming. Jesse Worker is grassroots organizer for Clean Water Action and the 1Sky campaign. He has seen the manifestation of climate change vulnerabilities with groundnut farmers in Senegal and coffee farmers in Jamaica. A recent graduate of the School of Natural Resources and Environment and the School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan, he is working to pass U.S. climate policy that will be the necessary first step towards tackling climate injustice.
• Lester Wyborny will discuss hunger. Lester is a group leader for the Ann Arbor Results group and has participated with Results since its creation in the mid-80s. As an organization, Results’ mission is to end the worst aspects of domestic and global poverty through lobbying and education. Results is active in many congressional districts across the US, and in several other countries. Lester also served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Central Africa.
• Erika McNamara will discuss broad peacemaking issues such as torture, nuclear weapons, Iraq, and Afghanistan. Erika is an attorney and serves as the Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice representative to the Regional and State Partners Council for the National Religious Campaign Against Torture.

A volunteer works the garden at Mesiah's Temple, Ypsilanti

At our first Faith & Food gathering at Memorial Christian Church in March, over 70 community members representing over 40 congregations learned about congregational gardening to feed the hungry.

Since that first meeting, Faith & Food has successfully organized over a dozen congregational gardens growing healthy, fresh, local produce for low-income families. And the program has provided resources and materials to many more.

How did it go? What did we learn? How can we continue to ensure that the hungry in our community have access to food?

Find out at the…

FAITH AND FOOD SEASON WRAP-UP MEETING
Monday, Oct. 12th  6:30-8:30pm
Food Gatherers Warehouse
1 Carrot Way, Ann Arbor, 48103

The meeting will begin with a tour of the Gathering Farm, followed by refreshments and a presentation. We will discuss the pilot year, what we have learned, and where to go from here. Join us to learn more about this exciting initiative to grow food for the hungry!

(Questions, contact Merilynne Rush, faithandfood@growinghope.net, 734-786-8401)

Join us for these self-guided tours of Washtenaw County garden sites that create smart, fast and sustainable ways to increase low-income people’s access to locally grown, healthy food.

• Visit Faith & Food congregational gardens to see for yourself how this collaboration among ICPJ, Food Gatherers, and Growing Hope is supporting congregations to grow healthy food for the hungry.
• Get a look at other area gardens developed by Food Gatherers, Growing Hope, and Project Grow to see how local community members are responding to increased need for healthy, affordable food.

Choose from 2 dates: July 22, 6 – 9 p.m. OR August 1, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.

Featured locations: (DOWNLOAD A SITE MAP HERE!)

• The Gathering Farm at Food Gatherers, Ann Arbor
• The Growing Hope Center Urban Farm, Ypsilanti
• Project Grow’s Edible Avalon Community Garden at Arbordale, Ann Arbor
• Faith & Food Congregational Gardens, including:
  • St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, Ann Arbor
  • St. Andrews Episcopal Church, Ann Arbor
  • Messias Temple Apostolic Church, Ypsilanti
  • Unitarian Universalist Congregation, Ann Arbor, 7/22 only
  • Holy Faith Lutheran/Episcopal Church, Saline, 8/01 only

This is a self-guided tour.  Stop at one or all of the sites in any order. Volunteers will personally show you around and tell you about their program.  Learn gardening techniques such as building raised beds and fences and recruiting volunteers.  All produce is donated to meal programs, food banks, and neighbors.

DOWNLOAD A SITE MAP HERE!

For more information:
Call – 734-786-8401
Email – faithandfood@growinghope.net

PRESS RELEASE – Big Community Harvest Garden Tour

The Big Community Harvest Projects are funded by the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation/Pfizer Big Idea Grant.

Read on for more details about each of the featured sites…

The Gathering Farm at the Food Gatherers, 1 Carrot Way, off Dhu Varren, Ann Arbor

This large, impressive garden maintained on-site by staff and volunteers grows high yield, high nutrition vegetables for immediate distribution to food banks and meal programs, or for preservation for the winter months.

The Growing Hope Center, 922 W. Michigan Ave., Ypsilanti

This urban farm and Growing Hope Headquarters under development features a 3000 square-foot hoop house and demonstration and training gardens.  It showcases how healthy food can both help feed the community and provide opportunities for green jobs.

Project Grow’s Edible Avalon Community Garden, 1010 S. Arbordale, Ann Arbor.

This group of gardens provides an opportunity for Avalon tenants to learn new skills, meet their neighbors, share recipes and cooking ideas, become more self-sufficient, and have access to nutritious foods that they have grown themselves with hands-on support from Project Grow and volunteers.

Faith and Food Congregational Gardens:

St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, 3109 Scio Church Rd., Ann Arbor

This garden was started in June, 2009 and features a large tilled area on a sprawling, rural lot.  Learn how these volunteers got the work done in a short amount of time, including building a critter-proof fence.

St. Andrews Episcopal Church, 306 N. Division St., Ann Arbor

During the winter months, members of St. Andrews attended the Growing Hope Institute course on community gardening in preparation for sustaining a small vegetable garden on this crowded downtown property.  Planted in April, these four 4′ x 8′ raised beds have been producing an incredible amount of food.

Messias Temple Apostolic Church, 200 Harriet St., Ypsilanti

This large, urban garden near downtown Ypsilanti is essentially maintained by a few dedicated members, with the goal of involving other area churches, including nearby First United Methodist.  Some exciting youth activities are planned.

Unitarian Universalist Congregation, 4001 Ann Arbor Saline Rd., Ann Arbor (July 22 only)

For three years several families have gardened side-by-side in this charming little garden.  They are all now contributing to the Faith and Food program by growing the requested vegetables and making collective donations to Food Gatherers.

Holy Faith Lutheran/Episcopal Church, 6299 Saline Ann Arbor Rd., Saline (August 1 only)

Holy Faith decided to build their new garden on the front yard in plain view of the busy road to act as a living billboard, advertising that this church is participating in local solutions to rising needs, and inviting others to be a part of the solution.

Grace Fellowship Church’s participation in the Faith & Food Program was recently highlighted in the Ann Arbor News .  Continue to read the full article…

Members of Grace Fellowship Church in Ypsilanti create garden of giving

by John Mulcahy | The Ann Arbor News

Sunday June 07, 2009, 7:00 AM

Photo credit: Eliyahu Gurfinkel, The Ann Arbor News. Members of the Grace Fellowship Church in Ypsilanti planted a vegetable garden with the intention of donating half of the produce to the Food Gatherers of Ann Arbor. From left are William Anderson, Joe Little and his daughter Cyntina Grantham, James Powell, Debbie McCray, Rose Williams, Angela and Andrew Robinson and their daughters, Adairah, 12, and Tangee, 16.

Andrew Robinson and some other congregation members at Grace Fellowship Church in Ypsilanti put some real muscle and a lot of good will into creating a garden this spring.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

• Faith and Food is not recruiting more congregations for gardens this year. However, to inquire about next year:

Call: 734-786-8401.

E-mail: FaithandFood@GrowingHope.net.

• To learn more about Food Gatherers and its programs:

Call: 734-761-2796.

Visit their Web site: www.foodgatherers.org

On a piece of church-owned land on Mott Road in Ypsilanti Township they dug a 1.5-foot deep trench by hand all the way around a 30-foot by 30-foot area. They installed a fence in the trench, laid cardboard over the whole enclosed surface and covered it with three truck loads of compost, which became the planting bed.

Starting in mid-May they planted broccoli, beans, squash, tomatoes, collard greens, cabbage and other vegetables.

When the harvest starts coming, half of the food will go to Food Gatherers of Ann Arbor to help feed low-income people and the other half will be distributed among Grace Fellowship church members.
“We are glad that we can be part of something so worthwhile,” Robinson said.

It is just one of 14 church gardens – 12 of them new this year – in Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor and other parts of Washtenaw County being cultivated for Faith and Food, a program sponsored by Growing Hope of Ypsilanti, Food Gatherers of Ann Arbor and the Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice.

Another four congregations are donating from members’ private gardens. Five of the participating churches are in Ypsilanti.

Merilynne Rush, who coordinates the program for Growing Hope and recruited churches to participate, said the goal is to create a fast, smart, sustainable way to give low income people access to healthy, locally grown food. The project has been embraced because many people like to garden, she said.

“People caught onto this idea very quickly,” Rush said.

The program specifies which foods the gardeners grow, based on Food Gatherers’ needs. Examples are foods with long shelf lives, such as carrots or potatoes; peas, because they are harvested early; and collard greens, because they aren’t routinely donated, Rush said.

Eileen Spring, president and CEO of Food Gatherers, said that Faith and Food is part of an overall effort by Food Gatherers – including by starting its own garden – to secure a more predictable and consistent supply of good, healthy food.

“It is one of our goals to get more food quickly in response to rising needs,” Spring said.

Faith and Food is backed in part by a $92,000 grant from the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation to Food Gatherers for a program called The Big Community Harvest. Food and Faith is one part of that four-pronged program.

Some of the grant money is being used to re-imburse the participants for materials, such as the fence that went around Grace Fellowship’s garden.

Other materials are donated by the church members. For instance, the compost used for the Grace Fellowship garden came from portions allotted to some congregation members from the Ypsilanti Township compost yard.

The project is one that requires a lot of follow-through, including plans for weeding, watering and harvesting, Rush said. In the case of Grace Fellowship’s garden, Growing Hope was able to provide rain barrels to catch rain for watering since the garden is not near a water supply, Robinson said.

The project plans tours of the gardens July 22 and Aug. 1, Rush said.
The program is not accepting any more new gardens this year, but welcomes inquiries for next year, Rush said.

John Mulcahy can be reached at jmulcahy@annarbornews.com or 734-994-6858.

http://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/index.ssf/2009/06/members_of_grace_fellowship_ch.html

“Faith and Food Program Helping Congregations Grow Food for the Hungry”

With grant money from the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation, the Faith and Food Program is helping the faithful build community gardens and help feed our neighbors in need. Just two months old, the program initiated by Growing Hope, Food Gatherers, and the Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice already has 17 member congregations from all over Washtenaw County. They are growing vegetables to donate to Food Gatherers for distribution to area food banks and meal programs.

“There’s a growing desire among people who utilize food distribution programs to eat healthier food,” says Eileen Spring, Executive Director of Food Gatherers. “Based on our recent Food Security Study (available at www.foodgatherers.org), we know that there is greater need and fewer resources to feed the local hungry. This program brings congregations who have a desire to help and a ready volunteer base into the solution.” With a little planning and organization, fresh-picked produce in good condition will be showing up at Food Gatherers warehouse all summer and into the fall.

Here’s how it works: Faith and Food Congregations either have a garden on-site or donate collectively from member’s home gardens. The size of the garden can vary, but 20′ by 20′ is suggested. Members grow certain items that have been requested by Food Gatherers, such as collards, squash and potatoes, and then donate at least half of their yield. The program coordinator, Merilynne Rush, works through Growing Hope to help advise and organize. Rush has visited over 10 places of worship this month with information on such things as fencing, water sources, compost, and plantings. “I get to visit the gardens and get to know all of these caring and dedicated people. It’s been a real pleasure,” says Rush. “With willing volunteers and a desire to help, we can increase people’s access to fresh, local, healthy food.”

For more information, contact Merilynne Rush, at FaithandFood@GrowingHope.net, 734-786-8401. Growing Hope is a 501c.3 non-profit organization based in Ypsilanti, Michigan, that is dedicated to helping people improve their lives and communities through gardening and healthy food access.

At this time, the Faith and Food program is not recruiting more congregations to participate this year, but we welcome inquiries about the program and are planning for next year. Following is a list of the congregations participating in 2009:
First United Methodist, Ypsilanti
Grace Fellowship, Ypsilanti
Messias Temple, Ypsilanti
Spirit of Christ Teaching Ch, Ypsilanti
St. Luke’s, Ypsilanti
Episcopal Ch of the Incarnation, Lodi Twp
Holy Faith, Saline
Beth Israel, Ann Arbor
First United Methodist, Ann Arbor

St. Andrews, Ann Arbor
St. Barnabas, Chelsea
St. Nicholas Greek Orth., Ann Arbor
St. Thomas, Ann Arbor
Shalom Community, Ann Arbor
Unitarian Universalist, Ann Arbor
Vineyard, Ann Arbor
Webster United Church of Christ, Webster Twp

Building Local Collaborations to Address Increased Local Food Needs

With the current economic crisis, local needs for basic services have increased, and our Hunger Task Force is responding through the “Faith & Food” initiative. This unique collaboration effort unites two well-known hunger relief and food access agencies, Food Gatherers (www.foodgatherers.org) and Growing Hope (www.growinghope.net), with local congregations to develop congregational gardens specifically planted to feed the hungry.

Faith & Food Press Release – May 2009
Faith & Food most wanted donated produce (Food Gatherers)

View our PHOTOS and see the Faith & Food Gardens for yourself…

The Big Community Harvest Garden Tour highlights Faith & Food Gardens

View photos from this exciting event:

Join us for this self-guided tour of 5 garden sites that create smart, fast and sustainable ways to increase low-income people’s access to locally grown, healthy food. Visit Faith & Food congregational gardens to see for yourself how this collaboration among ICPJ, Food Gatherers, and Growing Hope is supporting congregations to grow healthy food for the hungry.
Two chances to participate: July 22, 6 – 9 p.m. or August 1, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Locations TBA, including: Faith & Food Congregational gardens, Gathering Farm at Food Gatherers Warehouse, and Edible Avalon community gardens.
Check back soon for updates on sites and topics to be presented at each site…

Thank you to all who attended the Faith & Food Hunger Collaboration Meeting on March 18th!

Over 70 community members from dozens of different congregations and organizations participated in the first Faith & Food meeting! The overwhelming interest and energy around this community initiative comes at an important time as the economic crisis continues to increase local need for food. Healthy food such as fresh produce is especially difficult to come by. Through Faith & Food, local congregations and community members are making a real difference by developing congregational gardens and donating their fresh produce to local families and individuals in need.

Download the materials from the Faith & Food meeting here:

• Faith & Food Flier
• Faith-Based-Garden-Survey-Inventory
  
• Food-Gatherers-Summary-of-Key-Findings (Full powerpoint now available at www.foodgatherers.org!)
  
• Next Steps: How can I get involved?
• Plant a Row for the Hungry – community
• Plant a Row for the Hungry – schools

Not able to make the meeting? You can still get involved! Learn how your congregation can develop its own community garden (or prepare your exisiting garden) to meet local hunger needs by reviewing the above materials (and be sure to fill out and submit the garden survey!). Please contact Grace Helms Kotre at (734) 663-1870 or gracek@icpj.net with any questions.

Get on the bus! Join ICPJ as we attend the vigil to close the SOA/WHINSEC and promote human rights in Latin America, Nov 21-23, 2008

Come to the vigil to close the SOA/WHINSEC

The School of the Americas (renamed the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation in 2001) has trained some of the worst human rights abusers in Latin America. Join ICPJ as we take a delegation to the annual vigil to say no to militarism in Latin America and Yes to human rights and justice. On November 21 to 23, ICPJ will join with School of the Americas Watch at the annual vigil to close the SOA/WHINSEC. We will be taking a bus, and we have scholarships available.

Visit our Latin America Task Force page for more information about this event.

Click here to learn about the current trip to the SOAW vigil.

Join ICPJ to screen Hunger No More on Tuesday, September 23 at 6:30 p.m. at Memorial Christian Church

Hunger No More: Faces Behind the Facts is a National Council of Churches documentary about world hunger. Most of us don’t often ask where our next meal is coming from. But for millions of Americans and nearly a billion people worldwide, such food insecurity is a daily reality. “Hunger No More: Faces Behind the Facts” approaches hunger from the perspective of faith, declaring that hunger is more than a social issue.

“It is a moral issue that needs immediate resolution,” says Burton Buller, President of Mennonite Media, who produced the program in collaboration with the NCC. “The program brings to life the moral dimension of this thorny issue, and offers up a vision for a new day when hunger is eradicated from the face of the earth.”

Join community members for an engaging film, insightful discussion, and opportunities for action on this important issue. FREE and open to the public. All are welcome to RSVP and bring a dish to pass, but this is not required.

Tuesday, September 23, 2008. Dinner will begin at 6:30PM, and the movie will be at 7PM. Located at Memorial Christian Church, 730 Tappan, Ann Arbor. Questions? Want to RSVP? Contact Jaimie Philip at 734.663.1870 or jaimie@umich.edu

Download and print the poster and help spread the word.