Hello. I am a garden. I like to think of myself as a food insecurity garden. My home is on the lawn of Gahanna Community Congregational Church in Gahanna, Ohio. In the summer of 2020, I came to fruition through a man who had a hope and a vision of helping people in my community combat hunger. His name was Bruce Daily. In fact, I’m named after him. My name is Daily Bread Community Produce Garden. My crops are distributed to a local food pantry. The pantry, Gahanna Residents in Need (GRIN), provides free food for Gahanna residents who qualify for nutritional assistance.

My success is largely due to the commitment and dedication of the volunteers who take care of me.  I started out as an extra plot of land beside the church, and through the vision of Bruce, the pastor and many groups of volunteers, I have become the home of twenty-two planter boxes.  I am proud to say that five of the planter boxes are accessibility boxes, and access mats have been installed to welcome wheelchair volunteers that may come to assist in planting or harvesting. Through the years of my existence, I have provided many types of vegetable crops – tomatoes, eggplants, leafy greens, peas, radishes, carrots, and peppers to name a few – many of which were started as seedlings.  You will see barrels sitting at the end of my planter boxes. These barrels are home to many flowers and herbs, usually matched with nearby crops for companion planting.  I even have a beautiful sunflower circle that becomes a welcome spot for butterflies and birds. A beehive sits close to me and the bees love to come and pollinate my plants. I generally average producing 1000 pounds of food per year. This was all harvested and provided to the residents in need.

I am sometimes a classroom, providing learning opportunities to a group of children and their parents.  This non-profit group, called Seeds of Caring, helps these children learn how a tiny seed can grow into a healthy food source.  I have been fortunate to have scout troops and church members volunteer their time by building my planter boxes and constructing and staining the fence that surrounds me.  My VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) volunteers are very special to me.  They have helped organize, set up volunteer programs, have written grants that help fund my supplies, and so much more. Students and school volunteers come to learn how to plant my seeds and clean my tools.  I owe much of my growing success to the wonderful Master Gardeners that have come to me through the Ohio State University Master Gardening Program. They have helped teach, direct, and provided insight and extended their knowledge to my group of weekly volunteers. There are so many people that have given their time and talents to my growing success.

I am a hub of social camaraderie, where people gather to work in the sun and rain, but more importantly, I am an advocate providing a service that addresses food insecurity. The crops I provide offer nutritional sources and hopefully help alleviate some of the cost burden to low-income families. The shared responsibility of the services I provide has had a positive impact on the community in which I live.  

The vision became real.

I am a garden.

I am loved.