WEEKLY OUTREACH UPDATE
I mentioned last week that I'd be profiling our outreach partners over the coming weeks, those organizations with whom we are partnering in ministry through financial giving, prayer, and service.
This week is a project through the Anglican Relief and Development Fund (ARDF), an organization we've supported throughout the life of our church. Incarnation is supporting ARDF's Kenyan Bakery project, a creative and holistic project that will improve community employment, health, education, agriculture, even soil quality.
The project will construct a bakery in Machakos, Kenya, to bake bread made from amaranth and sweet potato flours -- healthy, whole-grain alternatives to traditionally grown wheat. This nutrient-rich bread will be sold to the local schools, where children will enjoy the brain and body benefits of a healthier daily meal. Meanwhile, the bakery will provide many jobs for the local community.
What's more, the amaranth and sweet potato will be grown by roughly 3000 local farmers from the surrounding regions. The bakery will contract with the farmers for these alternative crops, guaranteeing a reliable market and stable income source. Local farmers will no longer need to compete with large industrial farms selling wheat at an unsustainable price. And the new crops will enrich the soil, unlike wheat, guaranteeing better yields for years to come.
The schools and bakery are run through the Anglican Church in Kenya, and income from them will be re-invested into future community development projects, enabling the local church to consistently meet the needs of its community.
One of our outreach priorities states: "We value creation, craftsmanship, and creativity, seeing them as true expressions of God’s nature in the world, worthy of our protection and investment." This bakery project checks all of those boxes and more! It's a beautiful picture of God's kingdom shalom reaching every inch of a local community.
Incarnation is home to many urban gardeners and home bakers who creatively tend creation from their yards, balconies, and kitchens. We are excited to partner with a project that channels these interests into a sustainable community development model overseas. Please join us in praying for the Kenyan bakery and farmers as this project gets on its feet!