Growing Hope Farm in Cambridge is a place where Waterloo region residents can purchase organic produce, partake in goat yoga, or visit for a day. What people may not realize until they arrive is that Growing Hope Farm, Epp Peace Incubator alumni, is also a social enterprise, supporting local and international peacebuilding with every purchase. The foundation of Growing Hope Farm is “Food, Family, Faith.” By centering activities around these three principles, Growing Hope Farm has grown from a small urban farm just four years ago, to a significant supporter of Mennonite Central Committee’s (MCC).
Founders Sarah and Philip Martin Mills always dreamed of being able to give back to their community. When the opportunity arose to purchase land for an urban farm, their peace and justice vision became a reality. Since its inception, Growing Hope Farm has focused on radical generosity and restorative justice. Producing quality, organic food with sustainable food practices provides the means to donate to MCC, while a commitment to providing an opportunity for skill building and meaningful work for incarcerated individuals reflects Growing Hope Farm’s foundational principle of family. As described on Growing Hope Farm’s website, “Our family is bigger than just our biological family, it's our community.”
Growing Hope Farm also expresses its commitment to peacebuilding through faith. For Sarah and Philip, their faith propels them to action, and that action is contributing to faith-based peacebuilding worldwide. For this reason, neither Sarah nor Philip take a salary so that 100% of the profits from the Farm are donated to MCC on an annual basis. MCC, a Core Collaborator at the Kindred Credit Union Centre for Peace Advancement, is committed to living out Christian faith in practical relief, development, and peacebuilding projects all across the world. Being able to track the impact of each dollar allows donors like Growing Hope Farm to feel confident that their financial contributions are making a difference.
Growing Hope Farm has grown rapidly over the last four years. Sarah and Philip’s initial annual donation goal of $3,000 quickly grew into a $20,000 donation in 2019. According to Sarah, the growth of the farm is a testament to how much the community has rallied around them in purchases, visits, and volunteering. Even though Growing Hope Farm has slightly altered its offerings in the last few months due to COVID-19, they continue to provide serene space where the community can join in on food, family, and faith, all while knowing that their resources are making a difference both locally and globally.