Fred Walker & Pastor Joseph Williams | Canaan Farms

Fred Walker & Pastor Joseph Williams

Canaan Farms

West Atlanta, Fulton County

Canaan Farms, a community garden operated by Salem Bible Church, aims to transform the local community's ethos through food and education. Established in 2016 as a small orchard funded by church members who dedicated fruit trees to departed loved ones, Canaan Farms has since expanded to include 35 fruit trees and 22 garden beds. Volunteers from the congregation and the surrounding community come multiple times a week to tend to the garden and harvest the fruits and vegetables, which are distributed directly to neighboring communities.

Education is vital to Canaan Farms' mission, particularly among the youth. Fred Walker, the garden manager, emphasizes the importance of instilling healthy habits early on as a means of cultivating healthier communities. Fred collaborates with local schools to get students involved in planting vegetables at Canaan Farms. “When the kids come back, they are excited to see what they have planted growing and producing food.” This hands-on experience not only fosters excitement among children but also enables them to share their newfound knowledge with their families.

Canaan Farms also hosted a Plant. Eat. Repeat. workshop, as part of a series of educational classes coordinated by Food Well Alliance and the Atlanta Botanical Garden. Over 75 church members attended in person or via live stream. This event not only engaged the local community but also reached individuals affiliated with the ministry across the country.

“That’s really the future of Canaan Farms: Taking what we have and creating programs around other churches and providing the model that we have here at Salem Bible Church,” said Pastor Joseph Williams, Senior Pastor at Salem Bible Church. However, making impactful change has its challenges. Community involvement and support from other organizations make a significant difference. “When you’re building a garden that’s not earning dollars because you’re giving the food away, that's a huge challenge. But having great partners like Food Well has helped.”

“It’s great to see how tapped into the community Food Well is” said Pastor Williams. “They are focusing on things that are really important like raising people’s awareness on gardening and passing that information on to the generations to come. […] So donor support really makes a difference. It shows people that it is possible, and I think that’s really beautiful.”

Canaan Farms has received various resources from Food Well, such as compost, grants and guidance from our Resource Team. “The funding is fantastic,” said Fred. “But the physical, hands-on work that Food Well provides is just as important and we really appreciate that.”