Service Learning at The Lord's Acre

Hi everyone! It’s been a while since my last post and it feels good to be back. Today I’m going to tell you about my first service-learning experience that took place at The Lord’s Acre. The Lord’s Acre is a volunteer run farm with an amazing variety of produce. Everything that is grown there is cared for and donated to different organizations in and around Asheville, NC. During my time there I had several different opportunities to assist in the preparation of the food. First my friend Wayne and I washed lettuce and kale by dunking them in buckets of cold water. Being that it was in the low 50’s maybe even 40’s that morning with no sun out yet made for slightly less feeling in our fingers. It was a nice change of pace when we left the shaded area and got to harvest okra straight from the crop. It was awesome to see how okra grows because I never even really thought about it before. Being a part of such an amazing place allowed me to understand how important it is to be involved with the local community. Without the dedicated people that give up their own time to make The Lord’s Acre function many people who are less fortunate wouldn’t have the ability to have fresh fruits and vegetables for their families. For myself this was the first time I had worked on a farm this size. Growing up I had a small garden in my backyard which could easily be managed by one individual. The Lord’s Acre has so much to offer that I didn’t realize the huge amount of manual labor required to ensure the upkeep of the produce. Experiencing all of this has helped me see the bigger picture of why we are given the chance to go out and interact with the community. It takes people from all walks of life to make a difference where it needs to happen. I really feel like UNCA and Asheville as a whole have the interest of providing a better quality of life and morale for anyone that needs it. I’m really looking forward to my next trip at The Lord’s Acre and a few other opportunities to help out on and off campus. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a wonderful week!