Community Garden Ministry

Dear Newman parishioners –

Our Community Garden and Meditation Area Ministry is now over halfway completed. We are still in need of financial support from our parishioners to complete the project. Below is a summary of our journey over the last 18 months.

MISSION OF OUR MINISTRY

“For I was hungry and gave me food, I was thirsty, and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger, and you welcomed me” (Matthew 25: 35-36).

GOAL OF OUR MINISTRY

Outreach to those less fortunate by supplementing their meals with fruits and vegetables and enriching their lives and the lives of our parishioners who interact with them.

OBJECTIVES OF OUR MINISTRY

• 70 raised, irrigated planting beds 20 feet long by 4 feet wide by 1 foot high for 55 low-income community families and 15 families from our parish.
• MEDITATION AND PRAY AREA in center of garden for parishioners to contemplate about their relationship with Christ.
• College students mentor families and maintain the garden.
• Families will rotate after 2-3 years to maximize our ministry outreach.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS TO DATE

• Decorative cedar wood fence with metal gate.
• Concrete entrance to garden.
• Drip irrigation system for each of the 70 raised beds.
• Drip irrigation system outside the fencing for trees and bushes.
• Two storage shipping containers and concrete footing for compost area.

ITEMS NEEDING TO BE COMPLETED

• Build 70 raised beds 20 feet long by 4 feet wide by 1 foot high.
• Dirt for the 72 raised beds.
• Decomposed granite or bark for walkways between the raised bed

Dear Newman parishioners –
Our Community Garden and Meditation Area Ministry is now over three quarters completed.

MISSION OF OUR MINISTRY

“For I was hungry and gave me food, I was thirsty, and you gave me something to drink, I was a
stranger, and you welcomed me” (Matthew 25: 35-36).

GOAL OF OUR MINISTRY

Outreach to those less fortunate by supplementing their meals with fruits and vegetables and
enriching their lives and the lives of our parishioners who interact with them.

VOLUNTEERS

Our ministry has relied on volunteers to complete many of the construction items. We are thankful
to Joe Korenak with Diamond Paving for volunteering his time and the tractor to load the raised
beds with dirt. We also would like to thank Francisco Pineda and his family for volunteering on
numerous days to help with the project and numerous other individuals who have volunteered
their time and financial support.

FUNDS NEEDED

We are so thankful to all the kind parishioners who have donated to our ministry.
We need approximately $4,000 to complete our community garden and start
selecting our gardeners in early March.

1. We are starting to recruit our gardeners.  If you know of any needy or other parishioners who are interested in gardening, please have them contact Dr. Jesus Muro Larralde at [email protected].
2. We have recently completed filling all the 74 raised beds.  This was a great accomplishment thanks to numerous volunteers over the last two months.
3. We need to raise approximately $4,000 through the generosity of our parishioners for several projects for us to open the Community Garden and Meditation Area Ministry for our gardeners
4. Come out and visit our magnificent parish Community Garden after Mass! Contact Dr. Dan Griffin ([email protected]) or Jim Grant ([email protected]) for any questions you may have about our Community Garden and what you can do to support it.