Home Gardens sustain life in Guaymas

My dear sisters and brothers,                                                                                               

Last year we started a pilot project of home gardens that was an overwhelming success! This is another version of “if you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. If you teach a man to fish, you feed him for a lifetime”. The idea is that by teaching our brothers and sisters to grow fruits and vegetables AND giving them the means to accomplish it. They, themselves, will produce healthier happier lives with less dependency on the Mission. A step out of poverty!

We witnessed the harvesting of vegetables (no fruit, yet) that DID lead to improved diets and the pride of accomplishment that went with them. Some were able to share vegetables with neighbors.  One man grew enough to sell the extra and help to support his family.

Our next step is to assist more families to start gardens and ease their daily struggle for food. We supply the seeds, young trees, tools, crude fencing to keep out the goats and a WATER TANK mounted on a concrete base. The tank is the biggest but one – time expense necessary for success. The entire cost to set up a family for home gardening is $500. That is why we are reaching out to you to help your brothers and sisters to feed themselves and others. What an amazing gift in support of the Franciscan value of care for creation and a manifestation of your response to God’s call to “feed the hungry”! What a great Fathers’ Day gift!

A donation of ANY amount is welcome and can help. 

or

send to PO Box 15576,Scottsdale, AZ 85267

Please share your own bounty and pray that the harvests of our gardens remain bountiful. Do whatever you can to make a true and sustainable difference. Thank you and God bless.

Peace and all good,                            

Fr. Martin Ibarra, OFM