July 23, 2007 issue
Goshen children raise a crop for world hunger
By Marla Pierson Lester Mennonite Central CommitteePage:
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GOSHEN, Ind. — The fifth- and sixth-grade Sunday school class at College Mennonite Church didn’t opt for small goals this summer. They’re taking on world hunger.
Neil Rippey, 13; Takoda Friesen, 11; and Emily Stoltzfus, 11; are part of a fifth- and sixth-grade Sunday school class at College Mennonite Church in Goshen, Ind., raising money for a Foods Resource Bank project. — Photo by Rose Widmer/MCC
The class, encouraged by Pastor Rosemary Widmer and in partnership with farmer and church member Tom Gunden, is leading the church in a Foods Resource Bank project.
Through FRB, crops are raised and sold in the United States, and the proceeds fund agricultural projects, including the work of Mennonite Central Committee, in other countries.
Gunden offered to plant, maintain and harvest five acres of soybeans for the FRB project if a group within the church would help cover the costs of seeds, fertilizer and rent for the field. Widmer thought of the fifth- and sixth-grade class.
“It’s a way they can express their willingness to contribute to the world, to follow Jesus’ example of caring for others,” Widmer said.
She said funds will go toward an MCC project through FRB.
Students wrote letters to their parents explaining the project and asking to do extra tasks to raise money for it.
“I was excited to help the church get involved in raising money and giving food,” said Emily Stoltzfus, 11, who learned to play two songs on her violin in exchange for her father’s $50 donation to the project. “It’s really great to know the food we grow is going to help people.”
Neil Rippey, 13, said he especially liked that a crop grown in Indiana helps farmers have the tools, supplies and knowledge they need to produce more food for their families.
“They don’t have to rely on us for food,” Rippey said.
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