WS Chronicle

SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE

How can churches address the mounting challenges of a broken food system and the significant health disparities in communities?

“Fighting Fire with Food: Growing Health for the Beloved Community” is free and open to the public at 7 p.m.  Tuesday, March 28, at Greater Church (formerly Greater Cleveland Avenue Christian Church) at 5095 Lansing Drive in Winston-Salem. Registrations are requested at https://events.wfu.edu/event/wake-div_fighting_fire_with_food#.WMh TPG_yvcs.

It will be led by two leaders who are addressing food insecurity in the Black Church.

Rev. Heber Brown will tell the story of the Black Church Food Security Network, which was birthed during the 2015 Baltimore Uprising to assist historic African-American congregations in starting gardens on church-owned land and be paired with farmers to create a pipeline of fresh produce from soil to sanctuary.

Rev. Richard Joyner will share the story of Conetoe Family Life Center, which emerged in 2007 as a response to the poverty, malnutrition, and premature death affecting one community in eastern North Carolina. Its programs focus on educating children and youth through gardening and providing healthy food for the community.

Rev. Heber Brown and Rev. Richard Joyner will share their experiences of leading faith communities to find creative ways to overcome these challenges and nurture community resilience.

This event is sponsored by the School of Divinity’s Food, Health, and Ecological Well-Being Program, in partnership with the following community partners: Greater Church (host), Forsyth County Food Consortium, Cooperative Extension of Forsyth County, Partners in Health and Wholeness, H.O.S.E.A. Project, Drum Majors Alliance of Social Justice & Reconciliation, and United Way of Forsyth County.

About Wake Forest University School of Divinity

The Wake Forest University School of Divinity is a dynamic and ecumenical theological institution that prepares men and women to be religious leaders in a changing world. The School currently offers the Master of Divinity degree and several joint degrees in law, bioethics, counseling, edu-cation, and sustainability, and a dual degree pathway in management, offered in partnership with other schools of the University. Through imaginative courses and diverse pro-grams of community engagement, students are equipped to be agents of justice, reconciliation, and compassion in Christian churches and other ministries.

About the Food, Health, and Ecological Well-Being Program

Renewing theological education for the 21st century, we equip religious leaders with the knowledge, skills, and pastoral habits necessary to guide congregations and other faith-based organizations into creating more redemptive food systems, where God’s shalom becomes visible for a hungry world. divinity.wfu.edu/fieldwork