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SC African American churches using gardens to address food insecurity
The Rev. Andre Thornhill and his daughter, Abigail, plant seeds at the new community garden near Ebenezer AME Church in Linvolnville.
LINCOLNVILLE — An early model of self-sufficiency in the African American community, this historic town is now the launch site for what organizers hope becomes a national initiative to address food insecurity.
Balm in Gilead, a Virginia-based nonprofit, is partnering with Ebenezer AME Church in Lincolnville to establish a community garden that is part of its Food Security Project across South Carolina. The effort already has 17 churches across the state that have expressed interest, and organizers hope to extend the effort outside South Carolina.
The nonprofit’s founder, Dr. Pernessa Seele, said the goal is to provide fruits and vegetables to the community, which was founded by freed slaves and a place where people long grew their own foods.
Lincolnville is also considered a “food desert,” a place with limited access to healthy foods.
“Nobody thinks of it as a food desert because you can get to Piggly Wiggly (in Summerville) in 10 minutes,” said Seele, an immunologist. “There are no fresh foods and veggies in the town.”
That limited food access is a long way from the town’s earlier days, when residents operated farms. Seele, who’s from the town, recalls her family’s farmland that included pigs and goats.
The community garden near Ebenezer AME will be a step toward providing people with affordable access to healthy foods, Seele said. This is especially important because organic foods are getting more expensive, she said.
“We have to get back to our ancestors’ way of living in terms of growing our food,” Seele said.
The Lincolnville site launched April 10 when several dozen people gathered outside the historic church building to celebrate the construction of the 3,750-square-foot garden and plant the site’s first seeds.
The land will grow okra, squash, zucchini, watermelon, cantaloupe, and other fruits and vegetables. The garden is named the Bishop Richard Harvey Cain Community Garden after the faith leader who founded the town.
The property is at 112 Dunmeyer Hill Road, which is owned by Seele and near the church.
The Rev. Andre Thornhill, pastor of Ebenezer AME, said the church welcomes anyone who wants to volunteer to care for the land. Ebenezer plans to partner with the nearby Ladson Elementary School as a way to teach younger people how to grow their own food.
“We’re allowing anyone to come help us garden,” he said.
Project organizers see this effort as a way to improve the health of people in the community, noting Lincolnville has one of the highest rates of hypertension and diabetes in the state.
The town’s founders were in better physical shape because they ate organic foods, Thornhill said.
“There was no supermarket,” Thornhill said. “You had to grow it yourself. Our people were healthier then because of it.”
Lincolnville maintains a rich history.
The small town was founded in 1867 by freed Blacks shortly after the Civil War. Cain, also a state representative, worked with others to purchase land to establish the town that would be named after President Abraham Lincoln.
Cain founded Ebenezer AME at the town’s center.
The descendants of the founders would become a tight-knit community that prioritized church, education and Black history.
Seele is one of those descendants. She grew up in the town, where she learned the importance of understanding her heritage. She launched a successful career as CEO of Balm in Gilead, which partners with faith-based groups to prevent diseases and improve the health status of individuals who are disproportionately affected by high rates of health disparities.
Though her career has taken her to New York and Virginia, Seele felt it important to launch a community-minded effort in her hometown.
“The most important thing about me is I’m from Lincolnville,” she said.
Original Article:
https://www.postandcourier.com/features/sc-african-american-churches-using-gardens-to-address-food-insecurity/article_be06dc30-a131-11eb-911c-b79761a8a14a.html
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Announcing the opening of the Bishop Richard H. Cain Community Garden in Lincolnville, SC
LINCOLNVILLE, SC (April 9, 2021) — A group of nonprofits and members of the Lincolnville community will host the launch of the African American Church Community Garden and Food Security Project on April 10, 2021. This project aims to strengthen the collective power of Black churches of various denominations to establish an equitable food system for their local communities across the state of SC. Launching in Lincolnville, SC because of the town’s long history of Black empowerment dating back to its founding in the late 1860s, this inaugural garden will be named the Bishop Richard Harvey Cain Community Garden after the faith leader who founded the town. Bishop Cain also founded Ebenezer African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, the host church for the launch of the project, after purchasing a large tract of farmland together with a group of other Black leaders from Charleston.
The African American Church Community Garden and Food Security Project is an initiative of The Balm In Gilead, a national organizations based in Richmond, VA. The Office of Health Disparities Research Mayo Clinic has joined with the Balm In Gilead and The Black Church Food Security Network, a project partner, to support the evaluation components of the initiative.
Bishop Samuel Green, Sr., Presiding Prelate of the 7th Episcopal District of the AME Church; Rev. Dr. Kylon Middleton Charleston County Councilman, District #6; Rev. George E. McKain, Director of Public Affairs & Social Concerns, of the AME Zion Church; participating faith leaders from across the state; political leaders and members of the Town of Lincolnville will join hands to plant the first seeds of the Bishop Richard Harvey Cain Community Garden.
WHAT:
The Launch of the African American Church Community Garden and Food Security Project-SC and the opening of the Bishop Richard H. Cain Community Garden
WHO:
Ebenezer AME Church, Host Church, in partnership with The Balm in Gilead, the Black Church Food Security Network, and the Lincolnville Preservation & Historical Society
WHEN:
Saturday, April 10, 2021 at 10:00 am
WHERE:
Location on the Parcel of Land: 112 Dunmeyer Hill Road, Lincolnville, SC Event will be held outdoors in accordance with CDC-recommended guidelines, including the practice of social distancing and masks worn by participants and guests.
About The Balm In Gilead
Celebrating 32 years of service, The Balm In Gilead works to prevent diseases and improve the health status of individuals by providing support to faith-based and other institutions in areas of
program design, implementation and evaluation. This support strengthens their capacity to deliver programs and services that contribute to the elimination of health disparities among African Americans.
Description of The Black Church Food Security Network
The Black Church Food Security Network strengthens and establishes economic ventures that supply every part of the food system by utilizing an asset-based approach in organizing and linking the vast resources of historically African American congregations and Black farmers in rural and urban areas.
African American Church Community Garden and Food Security Project in South Carolina
Working together, The Balm In Gilead Inc. and The Black Church Food Security Network is launching The African American Church Community Project and Food Security Project – SC. The African American Church Community Project – SC is designed to support faith leaders and congregations who understand our urgent need to work together to address the high rates of poverty, lack of fresh produce, food deserts, and food insecurities in our communities.
With over 50 years of collective experience in building and strengthening the capacity of Black Churches to become community hubs of health promotion and disease prevention, the organizations will lead community efforts in South Carolina to change health behaviors that often result in high death rates due to preventable diseases. Ebenezer AME Church in Lincolnville, South Carolina will serve as the national model for the initiative.
On Feburary 1, 2021, Dr. Pernessa Seele, Founder and CEO of The Balm In Gilead, Inc, offered the use of her land to Ebenezer AME Church to plant a community garden. The garden will be located at 112 Dunmeyer Hill Road in Lincolnville. The Garden will be named Bishop Richard Harvey Cain Community Garden, in honor of Reverend Richard Harvey Cain, one of the town’s 1867 founders. Rev. Andre Thornhill, Ebenezer AME Church pastor, has done a brilliant job getting the project off the ground.
Dr. Seele chronicled the journey and the process of bringing the African American Church Community Project and Food Security Project – SC to fruition.
The Original Property (Around 2/10)
2/15: I visited the land in Lincolnville. Some clearing had begun. I decided that we should expand the clearing area to accommodate community folk coming to work in the garden as well as sitting and enjoying the breeze. The birth of name: Bishop Richard Harvey Cain Community Garden.
Beginning 2/27: The property clearing was expanded to approximately ½ – ¾ acre.
We found the porch of the house and the well. Built in the 1800’s. I spent many days on this porch in the 50s & 60s.
3/14: Brother Robinson came with his tractor and tilled the soil.
3/14: The community garden has rows for planting.
Now we can see!
- This is a huge area for the first year of The folks will decide this week how much area will actually be used.
- The area for the community sitting and event on April 10 will also be allotted this
The soil will be tested this week to prepare for seeding.
Seeding is scheduled to begin on April 10 as a part of the launching event. A diagram on the community garden is attached.
About The Balm In Gilead
Celebrating 32 years of service, The Balm In Gilead works to prevent diseases and improve the health status of individuals by providing support to faith-based and other institutions in areas of
program design, implementation and evaluation. This support strengthens their capacity to deliver programs and services that contribute to the elimination of health disparities among African Americans.
Description of The Black Church Food Security Network
The Black Church Food Security Network strengthens and establishes economic ventures that supply every part of the food system by utilizing an asset-based approach in organizing and linking the vast resources of historically African American congregations and Black farmers in rural and urban areas.
African American Church Community Garden and Food Security Project
In South Carolina
Participating Churches
| Ebenezer AME Church Rev. Andre Thornhill, Pastor Lincolnville, SC Live Oak AME Church Browns Chapel AME Zion Church Metropolitan AME Zion Church St. John Missionary Baptist Church Saint Luke Missionary Baptist Church Rock Grove AME Zion Church Greater Unity AME Zion Church
|
Shiloh AME Church Rev. Eugene Collins, Pastor Edisto Island, SC El Bethel AME Church The Life Center Cathedral Robinson AME Zion Church Greater Unity AME Zion Church Bunton CME Church Pleasant Grove AME Zion Church Brookland Baptist Church |
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