This week I announced a new initiative that we’re working on at St. Marks – the development of a community garden on our site. This idea was sparked by my hope that we can use the large property and facilities that we have to create opportunities for connection and fellowship among our members, and also for engagement with the local community.  Many of our members at St. Mark’s and people who live in the area have a strong interest in gardening, producing fresh food, and the social benefits of working together on something positive. God has given us space and resources to take advantage of these opportunities, and also a call to be good stewards of the land on which we live and worship.

The site we’re looking to develop is the disused garden area along Memorial Ave, adjacent to the church hall and kitchen.

The shape of this project, and what kind of garden and other facilities we develop, is very much an open question.  At the moment we just want to gather together people with an interest to explore how this might work, and to think about our first steps.

We’ll be having an open meeting on Saturday October 28^th, from 12-2.30pm, meeting in the church hall. We’ll start with a BYO lunch and then have a discussion about the garden. If you have even the slightest hint of green on your thumbs, come along and join us!  Let me know if you’re coming – you can email me at andrew.bowles@stmarksemerald.org.au