The Hell’s Kitchen Farm Project (HKFP) is not fancy in comparison to the urban gardens grown by trendy farm – to – table restaurants in Manhattan. This midtown rooftop garden is unique. How many farms operate and exist with volunteer staff and grow crops in soiled filled baby pools that are strategically placed on the rooftop of a church that sits at the foot of one of the busiest automobile tunnels in the world?
In 2010 Pastor Alan Sherouse identified the need of fresh food for the low-income residents of the traffic-consumed neighborhood. Although his church had a food pantry, it relied heavily on nonperishable food items to be distributed to the community. HKFP was born out of Sherouse’s vision, community conversations and the good planning of engineers.
The Metro Baptist Church was born in Manhattan and has been serving New Yorkers for over forty years. It is a Christian community that welcomes everyone regardless of, social standing, education, gender, sexual identity or economic status. By the early eighties the church had outgrown it’s original meeting space and found a new home at Saint Clements, a Polish Catholic Church on West 40th Street that had been abandoned during the construction of the Lincoln Tunnel in the 1930s.
In 1995 the Pastor of Metro Baptist Church, David Waugh, formed a nonprofit named after the Baptist minister Walter Rauschenbusch to umbrella the church’s outreach services. It is serving over 2000 community members each year.
“There is not one unused inch of space,” says Joseph Perdue, the ministry resident.
Many visitors do not realize they are standing in the middle of a sanctuary. The windows are still stained but the open space is more like a theater than a house of worship. The church serves as a classroom, playground, and food pantry, place of worship and has a four thousand square foot rooftop farm.
“Feeding hungry people from a previously unused space on top of a church is a small miracle,” said volunteer and retired labor attorney, Bob Baer. Standing five stories up, on a roof amidst rows of 50 sky-blue plastic kiddie pools ready to be planted with harvest, Bob handed a group of young volunteers some seed, gardening tools, and advised them to put on some sun block. “Being in the sunshine on a rooftop in Midtown Manhattan in the shadow of the Port Authority Bus Terminal sometimes feels like returning to the Garden of Eden,” says Baer. He relocated to NYC from the Midwest, and sought out community and an opportunity to serve others.
According to the New York City Food Bank, 2.6 million New Yorkers are having difficulty affording food. Two hundred and fifty thousand New Yorkers are food insecure. The United States Department of Agriculture uses food insecurity to measure people’s lack of access to nutritionally adequate foods, so they may live an active healthy life.
“I am grateful and proud to have been pastor of a scrappy and resourceful congregation,” said Reverend Alan Sherouse. As a collective, the ministry and neighboring organizations including the Clinton Housing Development Corporation pulled their gifts together and designed a plan maximizing every inch of the church.
The United Way recognized the importance of health to the community and awarded the church a thirty thousand dollar grant to initiate the farm project. The unutilized rooftop space became the HKFP, a sustainable source of food and the only Manhattan farm operating on donations and volunteers alone. All of the crops are distributed to the community free of charge through the food pantry.
Tiffany Henkel has been one of the pastors of Metro Baptist for over ten years, executive director of Rauschenbusch Metro Ministries (RMM) for eight years and is very proud of their church. “ Our work has moved more toward sustainable change and justice efforts, rather than just short term fixes for community struggles,” said Henkel.
The food pantry operates every Saturday morning and people wait patiently for fresh produce. An out of work artist, Nicole Allen has been visiting pantries but has never found vegetables until she discovered the HKFP. “I was loosing my hair, but I feel better now because of the healthy food,” said Allen.
“It is not about giving away food. It is about putting nutritious food into the community and providing a place where people can escape the hardships of the world and find comfort without condition,” says Joe Perdue, food justice coordinator. It is called the Hell’s Kitchen Farm “Project”, rather than simply “Farm” because the ministry has always envisioned the possibility of expanding the community to more locations in the city.
RMM requires approximately five thousand dollars annually to keep the farm running. The majority of funds are raised from a mix of donations received from individuals, organizations and services also donated by volunteers. “We are focusing our efforts on one farm so we can build our capacity, engage more people, and eventually expand when the time is right,” said Henkel.
More working-class clients are visiting the pantry each week. Many people cannot meet the needs of their family because food prices are so high. Volunteers help the farm serve almost one thousand people per month.
Ashley Eubanks is a community engagement coordinator for the Clinton Housing Development. She is excited children are learning the power of the collective through youth programs at the farm. “You should see the looks on their faces after a seed becomes a pepper, these are city kids and don’t get to see where their food comes from,” added Eubanks.
Betty Macintosh has been volunteering at the HKFP for five years and enjoys when the children garden. Betty had worked many years as an urban planner and was anxious about the use of her time during retirement. “Volunteering at the farm has added to my happiness by giving me purpose,” said Macintosh. She utilizes her planning expertise when it comes to organizing the crops.
The food pantry has only been in jeopardy of shutting down one time. “ We are grateful for the contributions of our community and we are very happy on West 40th Street, but we could be much happier with an elevator,” smiled Henkel.
Hell’s Kitchen Farm Project Sources
Spent 2 Days Volunteering/ Thursday spent farming on the roof Top / Saturday Spend At the food pantry
Robert O Baer ( Bob): Urban Farmer and Attorney- Admin With the farm for 4 years : robertottob@gmail.com 517-927-1834:
Rauschenbach Metro Ministries ( HKFP) (EMAILED) rmmnyc.org volunteer@rmmnyc.org ( Non profit that oversees HKFP and Metro Baptist Church)
Joe Perdue: Rauschenbach Metro Ministries Food Justice Coordinator and Ministry Resident: jperdue@mbcnyc.org (relocated from ministry in VA to Metro Baptist Church) Orininally from Florida – Oversees Farm and Food Pantry – As of Sept 1 will be taking the curecr directors position ( AJ Walton)
Ruby Rims: Regular volunteer of food pantry and a former customer: rubyrims@aol.com
Jeannene Mutchler : Rauschenbach Metro Ministries Director of Teen Program: jmutchler@mbcnyc.org
Alan Sherouse. Senior Pastor First Baptist Church, ( Founder/ Creator of the HKFP ) Greensboro, N.C information is pastor@fbcgso.org 336.274.3286 EXT 231
Stephen Bouchard: a church member / leadership council Stephen.Bouchard@yahoo.com
Betty Mackintosh: Farm Board and Volunteer – Been with the Farm since the beginning / Also Community 4 Board Member BettyMackin@aol.com: cell 917 533 6507 ( Retired from The NYC Planning & Development)
Tiffany Henkel: Executive Director Rauschenbach Metro Ministries thenkel@mbcnyc.org
Reverand Dr Scott Stearman Pastor: Metro Baptist Church sstearman@mbcnyc.org
Metro Baptist Church http://www.mbcnyc.org/#/metro
410 W 40th NYC NY 10018
212 594-6644
Ashley Eubanks: Clinton Housing Foundation : Community Engagement Coordinator: AEubanks@clintonhousing.org 212-967-1644 ( email her the story)
Food Pantry / Farm Volunteers ( Volunteers through NY Cares non profit Organization )
Lindsay Keane: volunteer Lindsay.keane@gmail.com ( first time today- greeting patron and handing them their entry tickets- Student )
Jessica Karcher : Jessica.karcher@gmail ( Year and a half – directing patrons from their computer check in to the food pantry ) ( executive assistant to a strt up company owner who is based in Norway)
Layla Nunez : laylamarienunez@gmail.com ( volunteers throughout the city- graduate literary student at the new school )
Patron
Nickolet Allen : Patron/ Customer of the food pantry : Film maker/Artist momyntum@gmail.com
https://www.nysoclib.org/researchers/guide-researching-history-new-york-city-building
MISC SOURCING / FACT CHECKING
NYC DEPT of Buildings :
http://a810-bisweb.nyc.gov/bisweb/PropertyProfileOverviewServlet?boro=1&houseno=410&street=W%2040th%20&requestid=0&s=A03C41B885B461E4F46BD08866A7430E
4500 Sq Feet / Hudson Yards/ Cross Streets 9 AVENUE, DYER AVENUE
NY Cares: info@newyorkcares.org
https://www.newyorkcares.org/?gclid=Cj0KEQjw6cCuBRCh4KrGoJ6LoboBEiQAwzYsdOP6pgXWTPIwc_ZUAGFa1Tp3eGE_TNtrWH1l7kM2DXoaAg-98P8HAQ65 Broadway
19th Floor
New York, NY 10006
Food Bank NYC: online@foodbanknyc.org
http://www.foodbanknyc.org/about-the-food-bank/contact/visit-us
Jeannie Fournier, Director, Nutrition & Health Education, 212.566.7855 ext 8044
Samantha Brill, Donor Services Assistant, 212-566-7855 ext 8323
Food Sourcing212.566.7855 ext 3335
Port Authority / History of Lincoln Tunnel
Construction / 1934- opened 1937s
http://www.panynj.gov/bridges-tunnels/lincoln-tunnel-facts-info.html
http://www.panynj.gov/bridges-tunnels/lincoln-tunnel-history.html
Teddy Cares
http://www.cabaretexchange.com/cabaret/pick-of-the-week/past-pick-of-the-week/1524-ruby-rims-a-friends-last-sunday.html