Thursday, October 1, 2026
As fresh vegetables begin to ripen this summer, the Garden at St. Francis has reopened its seasonal farm stand, offering locally grown produce while continuing its mission of helping feed neighbors in need.
The volunteer-run garden behind St. Francis Episcopal Church in North Bellmore is now open Sundays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. through October. Visitors can purchase a variety of fresh produce grown on the church’s two-acre property, with offerings expanding throughout the season as crops mature.
Now in its 16th growing season, the garden continues to provide affordable, locally grown fruits and vegetables while donating surplus harvests to local food pantries. The farm stand also accepts Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program coupons, making fresh produce more accessible to residents experiencing food insecurity.
“We all know when we go to the grocery store that prices are ever increasing, and that it’s harder and harder for people to feed themselves and their families,” Rev. Grace Flint said. “Any way in which we can sort of try to close that gap ... we’re able to provide much cheaper, fresh organic produce, and they can see where it’s grown.”
Flint said the ministry is about more than selling vegetables.
“It’s not about sales for us. It’s not about making money,” she said. “It’s about trying to meet a need in the community.”
Throughout the growing season, the garden produces a wide variety of crops, including tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, kale, romaine, Swiss chard, collard greens, potatoes, garlic, onions, herbs, eggplant, zucchini and several varieties of beans. Volunteers have also expanded into growing fruit, including strawberries, while blueberries, blackberries and raspberries are expected to produce larger harvests in the coming seasons.
Produce not sold during the Sunday farm stand is donated to local food pantries, including the Parish Social Ministry at St. Frances De Chantal in Wantagh.
“It’s a gift. We never get that,” said Ele Ruth Melendez, director of Parish Social Ministry at St. Frances De Chantal. “Our clients really enjoy it.”
Melendez said fresh vegetables are rarely available through donations and have become a meaningful part of the ministry’s partnership with the garden.
“It’s given with love and it’s received with love,” she said.
The garden relies entirely on volunteers to plant, weed, water and harvest crops throughout the season. Open volunteer hours are held Wednesdays from 3 to 6 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon, with tasks available for people of varying abilities.
“Come and get your hands dirty digging the dirt with us — it’s fun,” Flint said.
She said the garden also offers visitors an opportunity to reconnect with nature and better understand where their food comes from.
“When you come here and you put your hands in the dirt, you know this is a thing,” Flint said. “You plant the seeds, and most of the time they grow. It takes water and sun and tending and all of those things. It’s just lovely to see that whole cycle, and then to see that people are able to put food on the table.”
Looking ahead, Flint said she hopes the garden will continue serving as a dependable resource for the community.
“We just want to continue to be a presence in our community and a reliable source for people to come and try to close that gap,” she said. “We want to meet the needs that we are able to and do our little part in our little corner of the world.”
