Holly Hirshberg who lives in San Antonio, Texas grew up in a family that always produced bountiful gardens filled with fresh produce. When she married and established a family of her own she continued this tradition until 2008 when the country fell apart in the Great Recession. Always creative, and a successful social entrepreneur, Holly realized that people could make up for the loss in income by growing some of their own food. If she provided the seeds along with gardening tips and information, why couldn’t people start their own gardens? (Even apartment dwellers can do this with container gardens.) And so the idea for Dinner Garden was born. Holly and her husband Sean registered Dinner Garden as a non-profit in 2009 and since then they have distributed more than 65,000 envelopes filled with seed packets to people all over the country and also were instrumental in the establishment of more than 190 community gardens.

When we met Holly and Sean on a visit to Texas a few months ago, Holly’s enthusiasm was the first thing we noticed. Surely, she could help alleviate hunger in this creative way. When we asked how the Good People Fund could help, it was quickly decided that funds to purchase thousands of zip-lock bags (of all sizes), mailing envelopes and postage could dramatically reduce the waiting list Dinner Garden maintains for people requesting seeds for their own gardens. Since seeds are donated, our funds allowed Holly to start her volunteers on a packing spree and before long envelopes were in the mail (the above picture shows some of those envelopes volunteers.)

This morning Holly shared the following email from a recipient of one of those packages. It certainly confirmed the value of our investment and reminded us of just how important alternative and innovative ideas will go towards alleviating hunger in this country.

Dear Dinner Garden,
I received in the mail yesterday an envelope with my seeds as a GIFT.
I wanted to share my excitement and how thankful I am. We have been
planting a garden in past years and this year with no income and 4
kids we were so upset that we did not have the money to go buy plants
and than(sic) the mail came and to my surprise my garden in a envelope. My
husband was hurt at work and we were told our son is going to have to
have heart surgery since his heart condition is not getting any
better. So with all the bad news, not even getting into the medical
problems with my 3 wonderful girls, this was a truly amazing gift
and I want you to know and understand how much you HELPED my family.
It was like a wish come true. Thank you again. Stacy
Lorain Ohio 44052

As Dinner Garden’s web site proudly proclaims, "You Can Grow Your Own Food" and the Good People Fund is thrilled to be able to help.

We loved being part of a grand day in Jerusalem last week when two busloads of LA-based March of the Living participants took part in a tzedakah/mitzvah event we helped arrange with two of our programs. Ruthie Sobel Luttenberg of Birthday Angels arranged for ten simultaneous birthday parties at Neve Michael and we heard that the celebrants and their classmates, as well as the guests from California had a great time mingling with Sesame Street characters who were part of the festivities.

In addition, March of the Living teens also had a chance to interact with 200 survivors who reside in a local hotel. Darla Oz from House to House put together an amazing program which we are sure will not be forgotten by either group. As Darla shared with us this morning:

The event was fabulous!!!!

The kids were the best ever; they interacted with the Survivors and they loved it. One young girl spoke Russian and she taught them how to say a couple of words. They also wrote a little note in Russian and gave one to every Survivor.

It was pure joy for the Good People Fund to help make these arrangements. We know that everyone who participated benefited from the experiences.

Miriam Avraham and Beth Steinberg are Jerusalem Moms, each with a special needs child. When faced with limited opportunities to provide their kids with meaningful summer and after-school activities they decided it was time to do something about it. Refusing to just bemoan the lack of quality programs, they set about to start their own. What began in 2007 as a summer program with 10 children, has grown today to Shutaf, a well-run quality organization that provides summer camp, after-school activities and holiday camp experiences for both special needs and typical kids. This inclusive program follows a model that encourages diversity and welcomes children with and without disabilities from across the religious and economic spectrum.

We first visited Shutaf on a warm afternoon during our Israel trip this past February. Set in Jerusalem’s beautiful Nature Museum, Shutaf’s programs were literally buzzing with activity. Each group is composed of both special needs and typical children of different ages with a range of disabilities. As we walked the halls we noticed one group intently watching a snake handler sharing the mysteries of snakes, while another group nearby was working on an arts and crafts project. In all of the noise and activity stood Deb, Shutaf’s amazing program director, totally unfazed by the din and activity.

Have Miriam and Beth hit upon a real need in their community? You bet. In the few years since they began, they now have a waiting list of families anxious to enroll their kids in Shutaf programs.

It did not take us long to decide that Good People Fund tzedakah could be wisely invested in scholarships for potential campers. In addition, a generous donor came forward and underwrote an amazing Purim party which all the kids enjoyed.

We were excited to hear of the completion today of AmpleHarvest.org’s free app that allows anyone with the new Android phone to access AmpleHarvest.org’s database to find nearby food pantries or soup kitchens where they can donate any excess produce from their home gardens. This app, along with an earlier version suitable for the iphone was underwritten by a grant from the Good People Fund.

Gary Oppenheimer, AmpleHarvest.org’s founder told us exactly how it works:

Using either the built in GPS or a user entered zip code, the app displays a Google map highlighting all of the AmpleHarvest.org registered food pantries in the area. Once a pantry is selected, it then displays detailed data including the contact and address information, days/times that the pantry can accept donations, as well as information about items the pantry most urgently needs. It can also connect the user with the pantry web site if one exists. Lastly, it also provides donors a convenient way to inform AmpleHarvest.org about the items or produce donated, should they wish to.

For most of us the planting season is about to get underway. It costs so little to plant a bit more–think of how many hungry people might benefit from your green thumb!

Shortly after we told Randi that we had made the car payments (see Diary April 12) she shared the following note from Susan, along with a picture of her family:

Randi and Angels,

Sometimes, we are truly amazed at how much good we can facilitate in the early morning hours. By 7am today we were involved in an exchange with Randi Cairns, founder of Home Front Hearts.