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Joining Our Hearts and Our Hands

Thank you to everyone who helped make our Crop Drop a huge success! More than 100 children, youth, and adults of all ages joyfully volunteered to sack more than 800 bags of produce to share with our neighbors across greater Birmingham. More than ten community agencies and congregations received the fruits of our labor to share with their neighborhoods. Leaders of Society of St. Andrews-Alabama (SoSA-AL) Gleaning Network, UAB’s Live HealthSmart Alabama, and Greater Birmingham Habitat for Humanity helped us learn more about food insecurity, affordable housing, and how we can continue to make a difference as followers of Christ who calls us to serve all. 

An extra special thanks also goes to Crop Drop Co-Chairs, Anna Hartzog and Kate Mather, as well as our Crop Drop Team Captains and the Community Ministries Team and IPC staff who provided leadership. We thank Virginia Jones for her many beautiful photos depicting intergenerational joy and service. To view the photos, visit IPC Community Ministries Facebook page or IPC's Service Opportunities page.

A Note for Future IPC Crop Drops…

If you were with us on Oct. 17, you likely noticed that we did not have quite as many potatoes to sack as originally planned. The SoSA-AL Gleaning Network director called me on Oct. 10 to say they would need to cancel our Crop Drop because the farmer who promised one-half of an 18-wheeler load of sweet potatoes had backed out due to unforeseen circumstances. This was a very rare situation, and one that SoSA AL Gleaning Network has not experienced. 

The Community Ministries Team was determined to salvage our Crop Drop. We quickly pivoted and connected with friends and colleagues from area agencies and churches who direct food ministries across greater Birmingham.  Thankfully, leaders at East Lake Market and UAB Mobile Markets connected us to a local farmer who was available to help us, and thus we enjoyed a fun and meaningful afternoon of Christian service. To be clear, next year we will have more than five times the load of produce we sacked last week. Be prepared to arrive at IPC Crop Drop 2022 ready to work even harder and longer, so that even more neighbors across our city receive needed food to fill their families’ tables. 

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