Fort Mill Community garden bearing fruit of labor, faith

Camaraderie and a sharing of faith – and food – are all growing strong as the Fort Mill Community Garden marks three years since it broke ground.

The garden is on land owned by Tega Cay Baptist Church on Gold Hill Road, just north of Lake Wylie Lutheran Church near the corner of S.C. 160 West. It has changed a lot since the first seeds were planted, but the mission remains the same.

Organizers wanted a place where anyone in the community could have access to land for planting fresh vegetables of flowers. Through that work they hoped to build relationships and share their faith.

They also made it a mission to share food grown in the garden with people who don't easily have access to fresh produce.

Mark and Lisa Daubenspeck started the project. The couple owns Breadsmith bakery on S.C. 160 West. Mark Daubenspeck said they donate a lot of their unsold baked goods to charities that serve the needy, but they wanted to do more.

“We see how much hunger there is, and they get canned goods all the time and they never get fresh vegetables,” he said.

The solution was to use volunteers to grow crops in the garden and donate it to local groups. About one third of the total garden space is used exclusively to grow food for the community. The garden is partnered with local groups, including the Fort Mill Care Center and the Community Cafe to distribute fresh vegetables to those who may need them.

Daubenspeck said they've even received help maintaining the community plots from another local church that comes in once a month to plant, weed and harvest as needed. The extra helping hands are very appreciated.

“We are at a good size for what we are doing right now, so things are getting easier for us.” he said, “It was very difficult in the beginning.”

Volunteers like Joe Jenkins have been there since the beginning, and know how hard it's been. He spent six months rebuilding an antique tractor so it could be used in the garden.

“The tractor has been in my family, it was purchased by my grandfather,” he said.

Jenkins, who works in IT, completely rebuilt the 1948 Allis-Chalmers tractor from the ground up using refurbished parts and painted it the original signal orange color.

“His dad, who is elderly, came out and watched him plow the garden,” Daubenspeck said.

Jenkins said his father is 95 years old and was proud to see the old tractor being put to use once again.

“He's seen it in action, he's good with it that we can utilize it, and get it restored, and keep it a part of the family,” he said.

“The tractor is just a piece of the whole ministry. The ministry is to build relationships with people in the community.”

That's exactly what's happened. The people who work the 45 plots have become close. They share gardening tips, water each others’ crops when needed and make decisions together about what to plant, like this year's crop of peanuts. It's a special kind of bond that's been formed after hours working alongside each other.

“I didn't start as a gardener, but you get to learn from people who have been doing it for years,” Daubenspeck said.

He said he's not sure how many more years the garden will be around. The location has always been temporary in case the church decides to build on the site. But regardless of its longevity, something at the core of the garden's mission has already been accomplished.

“They are building some relationships there, but we can also share the love of Christ,” Jenkins said.

This story was originally published June 26, 2016 at 4:22 PM with the headline "Fort Mill Community garden bearing fruit of labor, faith."