When Karen Miller got the call from the Atlanta Community Food Bank, it was not a matter of yes or no, but how.

Could Maryʼs Pantry, a function of St. Vincent de Paul, take 10 tons of produce from the Georgia farmers market? Then, the next week: How about two more?

“Karen got a call from the food bank saying someone had just cancelled a large order for produce and they were going to give it away, free. Yikes!” said Betsy Van Etten, who oversees the SVdP society at St. Ann. “Being the eternal optimist, she jumped on it.”

With the help of about a dozen, socially distanced and masked volunteers, Miller got the job done, and the perishable food, including 700 pounds of watermelon, made its way to grateful families and homebound parishioners. Their efforts were documented this week by the Georgia Bulletin, the weekly newspaper of the archdiocese.

Maryʼs Pantry comprises a trailer full of pantry staples on one side of La Salette Hall and a garden on the other. Although harvesttime is still around the corner, many clients were sent home with their own tomato and acorn squash seedlings to grow, courtesy of parishioner Kalen Redmon.

“You could tell the families who came to pick up their food were so thankful,” said parishioner Dave Middendorf, a first-time volunteer. “It made me feel that I was one of many people acting as the hands and feet of Jesus helping these individuals.”

Pictured: A cancelled order of produce was an unexpected boon for people who use the parish food pantry.  Photo credit: Michael Alexander, Georgia Bulletin

Until last weekend, the patch of land alongside the north wall of La Salette Hall was little more than an afterthought. About the only traffic it saw was the priestly kind as they steered past it to park behind the rectory.

But this unused scrap of land is being transformed with the help of St. Annʼs Adult Missions Ministry and has a promising future: bringing health and nutrition to the hundreds of people who rely on the St. Vincent de Paul Society food pantry.

Under the thoughtful eye of parishioner Karen Miller, crews have conceived and created Fredericʼs Farm, a neat line of raised planters where fruits and vegetables will grow and supplement the societyʼs food pantry. When harvested, the produce will be given away to people who visit the pantry each Wednesday and Friday.

“Access to healthy food can be a challenge to families with limited resources,” Miller said.  “Often the lack of good nutrition over time can lead to obesity, type 2 diabetes and heart disease.”

Fredericʼs Farm, named for the founder of SVdP, isnʼt quite the expanse of property its name suggests. So Miller and the society volunteers have a way for parishioners to get involved at home: plant a row or an extra seedling for the pantry.

“Growing things can be so rewarding emotionally,” said volunteer Kathy Gist. “It nourishes the soul for both the gardener and the recipient. It brings people together. Isnʼt that what family is?”  

Do you want to help?  Email  svdp.stanns.pantry@gmail.com  for more information about feeding families in need. 

Pictured: Volunteers Jim Brewer, front, and Dave Smith cut boards to create planters.