This year we have incorporated a few service projects into our home schooling. Service projects are such great learning experiences for our children! They provide an authentic educational experience while at the same time teaching empathy. Service projects teach our children that whether they are 5 or 55, they can make an impact on the less fortunate in our community.
In the fall, our home school group volunteered at Vision Ministries, a ministry of Denton Bible Church that provides food, clothing, classes and other essentials to those in need in the Denton area. The boys in our group sorted canned goods and stocked them on the shelves. The girls organized the clothing area. All of the children loved the opportunity to serve in such a real, hands-on way.
This semester we volunteered at Shiloh Field.
Did you know that 1 in 5 people in Denton County live at or below the federal poverty line and nearly one third of the residents here do not earn a livable income? That is where Shiloh Field steps in to help. Shiloh Field is our countries largest community garden and is doing a great job at feeding the hungry in Denton.
We were given a tour of the large, 15 acre land owned by Denton Bible, but operated solely by donation. In the garden there are 152 personal 15x15 plots for families and individuals to plant on free of charge. There are fields designated for farming various crops, a vineyard and orchards.
There is even an area on the land for chickens. The eggs laid by the birds are given to the hungry.
Once we had seen the entire garden, we were put to work. The children were shown an area overgrown with weeds and their job was to clear the weeds out.
They took their work very seriously and did a great job clearing the weeds.
To find out more about the garden, you can like them on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dbcgarden/
No comments:
Post a Comment