Manna Meal

Angela Rexroad with cabbage plants

The early 8:30 AM gardening hour was planned to allow work to be done in the cool of the morning…there was plenty of dew on the garden….or maybe all the plants were just sweating. It didn’t take long for everyone to join the ranks of the perspiration-drenched workers in the great out of doors today. Spirits were not dampened however. Mike Green of Green’s Feed Store gave us 3 trays of late flat dutch cabbage this morning, and we got busy and planted the stunted, hole-riddled plants with the prayer they would be blessed to produce heads. We filled one entire raised bed with them…tucking each into a hole with rich mulch and a little drink of fish emulsion and spritz of bT to deter the cabbage moths. More could not have been done to give them a happy home. Empty sections of garden–here a little, there a little–were tilled and cabbage plants lovingly were tucked into new homes to grow….some lucky ones got to go under the shade of the sunflowers that towered overhead. There was minimal harvesting this morning but a lot of hard work rendered. What a great sweaty team we had today! The team: Eleanor Spohr, Judy Darr, Angela Rexroad, Jay Rexroad, Martha Mallan, Liz Hereford, B. Peyton Forbes, Nancy Broyles, Tom and Myra. Jean was excused today.

Eleanor Spohr planted cabbage today

Nancy Broyles helping with the cabbage planting

Jay & Angela Rexroad, Nancy Broyles, Martha Mallan, Judy Darr

We agree with you Abbie....it has been a long evening and everyone is tired

The youngest workers select a tomato to take home

On Thursday evening, July 22, the heaven’s smiled. The heavy downpours that had been predicted to continue the entire week ceased and the ground dried to make this session possible. Little children and students were invited to come out and work alongside gardening regulars and to help with the first potato harvest. Two and a half rows of Yukon Gold potatoes were uncovered, pulled up and collected by the young first-time volunteers–one volunteer was only two years old. Children a bit older also helped plant peppers after the harvested  potatoes freed up some space. All children selected a tomato to take home. One young man hoed and helped with many more difficult chores. Mom and daughter helped carry vines to the compost pile! Adults harvested peppers, weeded and planted new sweet bell pepper plants in the fenced garden. Adults hoed, weeded and harvested herbs, flowers and all ripe tomatoes. The humidity and temperature were high but it didn’t dampen enthusiasm a bit. A reporter and photographer from the Charleston Gazette came out and took a photo of two of the children harvesters at the event. Their photo appeared in The Charleston

Abby and Grace Plants

 Gazette Friday morning and was titled “One Potato…Two Potato.” The crew for the session was: Angela Rexroad with niece and nephew Abbie and Rocky Davis, Betsy and Shike Keene with granddaughters Abby and Grace Plants, Mom and daughter team Teresa Westfall and Tessa Dillon, Deb Mattingly and son Nathan Parsons, Danita Nellhaus, Scott W. Mansour, Bob Lockhart, Peyton Forbes, Jean Simpson, Tom and Myra. Gazette reps were Julie Robinson and photographer Lawrence Pierce.

Rocky Davis finds potatoes

Abby Plants shows off a grand potato that she found

Teresa Westfall and her daughter Tessa Dillon helped harvest many potatoes

Abbie Davis says she LOVES gardening and wants to come back to help plant next year

Abbie and Rocky Davis work tirelessly to plant peppers where potatoes used to be-yes they are wearing gloves

Peepaw Shike Keene helps Grace Plants with the harvest

Nathan Parsons helped glean the potato patch by moving some of the leaf covering

Abbie Davis is going to be a Master Gardener

Grace helps Peepaw with potato gathering

Manna Meal Community Garden submitted photos of several types to the Capitol Conservation District photo contest in July. A photo of the recent FFA student volunteers won 1st place in the adult division (their mission is aligned with that of the Capitol Conservation District we discovered) and two more photos won honorable mention. The $95 prize money will be put in the gardening account. The photos will go to the State level next.

First Place photo of FFA students July 8

Honorable Mention - harvest 2009

Honorable Mention photo of cabbage in the raised bed June 2, 2010

It started thirty-two years ago and has required multiple thousands of volunteer hours of service to make the Manna Meal Soup Kitchen all it is today. In honor of this dedication, volunteers past and present were acknowledged with the presentation of the Governor’s Volunteer Service Award at the Charleston Civic Center on July 21, 2010. Jean Simpson accepted the beautiful crystal etched award on behalf of the volunteers.

Manna Meal Volunteers have provided meals to 1.12 million people since 1978. Every week, more than 75 volunteers are on hand to serve breakfast and lunch each day.

The award is crystal clear and a bit difficult to see. It will be on display at the Soup Kitchen for your enjoyment too.

The Manna Meal display table at the Volunteerism Conference July 20-22

On this hot summer day the crew weeded and tilled tomato walkways and so much more! No photos available for the session but the super dedicated hard-working crew was: Gary Brown, Donna Walker, Robert W Lockart, Kelly A Bragg, Suzanne Kingry, Kim Kristic, Dannie Walker, Amy Ricketts, Nancy Broyles, Anne and Thomas Miller, Judy Darr, Lauren Darr, Jane Davies, Jean Simpson and Tom Jett….myra went to the lavender fair.

butterfly and the dahlia