The Aberdeen Health Foundation is excited to...
Feeding families and fostering food security
Community Cupboard’s new garden is feeding families and fostering food security
For six years now, the Maranatha Bible Church Community Cupboard program has provided supplies of clothing, bedding, dishes and non-perishable food items to anyone in need.
This year, with the support of a grant from the Aberdeen Health Foundation’s CAS Endowment, the Community Cupboard now has its very own garden, which it is using to supply fresh, local, healthy produce to participating families.
The goal of the Community Cupboard is to help people help themselves, and it is achieving this by moving beyond supplying food, to providing mentorship and food demos to teach gardening and food preparation skills. In the process, the project is building food security for the 100 or so families who participate, the majority of whom have school-aged children.
“We are very, very thankful for the support we have received from the Aberdeen Health Foundation and other organizations, which has enabled us to move forward with the garden,” says Pastor Stearns. “And we are ever so thankful to the members of our church community who give in service to make the Community Cupboard run. It is very meaningful to see those who have themselves been helped in the past by the Community Cupboard now helping others.”
The Foundation’s CAS Endowment was established to support projects that alleviate risk, prevent crisis, and enhance the potential for healthy outcomes for children, youth, and families in Pictou County. By supporting the Community Cupboard garden, the Aberdeen Health Foundation is having a direct impact on the health and wellbeing of participating families.