During the pandemic, a significant community garden sprung up at the corner of Delaware Avenue and Wilbury Place (near the corner of Hertel).
I first learned about the formations of The Garden Church when I wrote about The RawTools Project: Guns to Gardens earlier in the year. What was once simply a large grass lawn has been transformed into a productive garden, tended by the community, for the community. The last time that I inquired about the garden, applications to tend the raised beds were being accepted. Now, there is a significant presence of gardeners that are active at the site.
Passing by The Garden Church earlier today, I was impressed by the transformation of the corner, from a lifeless lawn into a beautiful, bountiful garden-scape. I was so intrigued by the development that I reached out to Pastor Frankie Andrews, who moved back to Buffalo from South Florida with his family, in August of 2021.
“What I love about our garden is the diversity of gardeners,” said Pastor Andrews. “There are 5 gardeners from the church, and the rest are from the community. There are 20 raised beds that are all spoken for. This past weekend 3 more gardeners inquired about the beds, and 3 of the gardeners from the church are going to give them their plots. There is no cost to gardeners. All that we ask is that they all work together on Saturdays, from 10am to 12pm, and for one hour during the week, and that they leave a portion of the harvest for the church, so that we can give it to the community. During the month of July, we gave away over 500 pounds of produce, on top of what the gardeners took home for themselves. We couldn’t give it away fast enough – we resorted to posting on the Facebook ‘Buy Nothing’ page. People would come to pick up the produce, and leave food in the food pantries that are located at the garden.”
I found it amazing that Pastor Andrews and his family are doing all of this without a congregation (yet). The new-ish church is part of Lumber City Church in North Tonawanda. The garden is thanks to Imagine Community Gardens (ICG), which has successfully partnered with 7 regional churches to build community gardens. The Garden Church has also partnered with The RawTools Project: Guns to Gardens, and is anticipating a donation of 10 garden tools (upcycled from guns) in coming days.
Throughout the summer, the church held a number of community events, where gardeners prepared food for the community, using the bounty that they grew. The garden has become a place for people to learn, to grow together, and to meet people from all over the world.
And they are doing this as a church without walls at the moment, since there is yet to be an official congregation formed. Pastor Andrews believes that the first Sunday services will be held around the first of the year.
“In the meantime, we are making sure that we provide for the community,” said Pastor Andrews. “We gave a raised bed to the congregation from New Generation Church on Hertel, so that they could hand out produce to their own ministries. We do this so that people that are hungry can eat.”
I told Pastor Andrews that I never even realized that there was a church at the corner of Delaware Avenue and Wilbury Place. He told me that I was not alone. When he would call tradespeople to fix up the interior of the 100-year old church, they didn’t believe him when he told them where the church was located. But now that there is a community garden, everyone is taking notice.
“It could have been a parking lot that would have serviced people for two hours a week,” said Pastor Andrews. “Or it could have been a community garden that provides healthy food for the community throughout the growing season. One of our gardeners is an occupational therapist. She brings her patients here. Another gardener is a grandmother, who gardens with her grandchildren. For my family, it’s an honor that we get to be here.”
The Garden Church is open to everyone, whether they are reaping and sowing, participating in a pot luck feast, or simply want to be a part of a growing movement that is in tune with a more natural balance of life.
The Garden Church | 2358 Delaware Avenue | Buffalo, New York 14217 | 716-877-0023
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