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Stories from around the synod Reaching Out - Peace Lutheran Church, Salisbury, Mo. Teams Up with Hosanna! Lutheran Church, Liberty, Mo. to Help Feed a Hungry World Hunger is the most extreme form of poverty, where individuals or families cannot afford to meet their most basic need for food. Every day, almost 16,000 children die from hunger-related causes--one child every five seconds while others suffer from chronic undernourishment and vitamin or mineral deficiencies which manifests itself as stunted growth, weakness and heightened susceptibility to illness. Peace Lutheran Church in rural Salisbury, Mo., has been responding since 2004 with generous hearts and hands to help feed a hungry world through growing and donating food to Foods Resource Bank (FRB). FRB is a Christian Response to World Hunger. This program provides new and unique opportunities to fighting world hunger. A typical project involves a group of people getting together to farm a plot of land. After the harvest, the crop is converted to cash which is donated to FRB to supply seeds, tools, drip irrigation, animals, and instruction to local villagers who work to create community gardens, wells, herds, etc., to sustain them long-term.
Many of the Hosanna! members had roots in the country and had considered their own community, Liberty, somewhat rural until 5-10 years ago. This fairly new and rapidly growing congregation immediately jumped on board, eager to share their abundant gifts and talents. They hosted Peace Lutheran for a Blessing of the Seeds which took place during a morning church service in the early spring. This allowed a time of joint worship and during a free-will brunch after the service, a time of fellowship with one another. During the summer months, the members of Hosanna! were very excited about the opportunity to sponsor one or more acres on the FRB plot. All-in-all Hosanna! donated $3,109 in their support of the project. Meanwhile, the members of Peace had donated their time to plant 24.5 acres of corn on land provided at a discounted rate by one of their members. They also spread the Word of God by encouraging local businesses to join in the effort of fighting hunger. The response was overwhelmingly positive by the community. Peace Lutheran Church not only received monetary donations, but all of the seed and fuel was donated as well for the project. In addition, they received a discount on chemical and herbicide application, and the local grain elevator agreed to pay a premium per bushel at harvest.
During the harvest, Hosanna! enjoyed learning about the farming process. Individuals took turns riding in the combines and riding to the town grain elevator in the big grain trucks. Children were eager to touch the kernels and were mesmerized as they watched the combines gobble up six rows of corn at a time. Many of the older members commented on how different farming was today from when they grew up. At noon, everyone joined at Peace for a homemade meal and what one member of Hosanna! called “delicious breadbasket-of-the-world food.” Many of the members were amazed at the homemade pies made of cherries, apples, and pecans from the trees of those living in the country, as well as blackberries hand-picked from the vine. After a wonderful afternoon of fellowship and learning about life on a farm, the members of Hosanna! returned to the city eager to participate again next year.
God blesses us daily and provides us with many opportunities to help others. This project not only brought rural and urban Christians together, but allowed them a chance to spread the Word of Christ to others, encouraging them to share their many gifts, even if in a small way, to improve our world. Catherine Meyer “Bear one another’s burdens, and in
this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” Galatians 6:2 |
In
2004, Peace Lutheran Church, in partnership with an urban Lutheran church
near St. Louis, was introduced to FRB. For two years, they had great
success combining land, labor, and financial resources to grow and harvest
food. However in 2006, Peace found themselves without an urban partner.
Dedicated in their mission to feed a hungry world, Peace forged ahead
on their own. The members placed their faith in the Lord and continued
to tell others about the program which donates 100% of the profits to
the hungry. In 2007 a new urban partner presented itself in the form
of Hosanna! Lutheran Church in Liberty, Mo. 
On
Sept. 15, 2007, a beautiful fall day, members from the two congregations
joined together in the field praying for a bountiful harvest and blessings
upon everyone who had given so selflessly of their time and money. They
were reminded of how blessed they are to have plenty of food to eat,
often with much to spare while others (who they may never meet) are
starving every day. 
All-in-all
the two churches were able to send $12,294 to FRB and Lutheran World
Relief in 2007. The best part of this program is there are no overhead
costs, so 100% of this money goes toward supporting sustainable food
security programs in countries such as Angola, Bolivia, Guatemala, India,
Mali, Niger, Palestine, Peru, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia. According
to FRB, one bushel of corn will feed 65 people for one day. This
year our project produced 150 bushel per acre -- or 3,675 bushel!
Only $100 will help feed a family of five for three MONTHS! As a representative
for the program said, “Everyone wants to stay home; everyone wants
dignity.” By educating those who are in the most need to provide
for themselves we are providing them an alternative to immigrating to
other countries.