Our Mission

The Mission of Bountiful Churchyards is to increase access for those facing food insecurity to lands not otherwise available to them, such as churchyards and similar spaces, to raise or glean their own food. 

Our Vision

Our Vision is that people with limited resources available to purchase food will find welcoming spaces to grow or glean food for themselves and their families within walking distances of where they are living.

Our Activities 

To achieve its Mission, BountifulChurchyards.org promotes, and assists cooperating churches, temples, mosques, civic organizations or other landowners to undertake on their lands:

  • the planting of edibles into, and/or labeling of any edibles already present in, existing perennial borders, hedges, and hedgerows;
  • the development of community gardens, kitchen gardens and orchards, where space permits, on currently underutilized portions of churchyards;

To support cooperating organizations in their activities, generate revenue to cover organizational expenses, and provide natural forums for making connections with congregations, potential volunteers or supporters, Bountiful Churchyards intends to establish:

  • its own nursery;
  • a farmers market program;
  • a landscaping service for churches who desire to infill with edibles but don’t have the staff or volunteers to do so on their own.

 


About the Author

Our Executive Director, Stu Richardson, is a former teacher with 25 years in K-12 classrooms. Currently an MDiv. student at Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary preparing for ordination in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, Stu has an M.Ed from Chapman University and an Ed.D. from the University of San Francisco. Outside of work, Stu is a beekeeper with 30 hives of his own set in an organic herb garden. He uses a Worksman Low-Gravity Platform Bike with Extra-Cycle Freetail and a 6 foot Bike-to-Work Trailer for most local errands.