Twin your turnips and bless a family

Twin your turnips and bless a family

Twin your garden and plant hope for a family in rural Kenya.

That’s the suggestion from Ripple Effect, a charity that works alongside farmers in six countries in East Africa, helping them learn more, grow more and sell more.

‘If you are proud of your garden, whether it is large or small or even a simple patio, you might like to twin it with a family in Migori, Kenya,’ said Ann Hatton, Ripple Effect’s church development executive. ‘By doing so, you will plant hope for a family, so they can grow more food in their own gardens.’

Ripple Effect started in 1998, under the title Send a Cow. Christian farmers answered an appeal from the Bishop of Uganda, with families desperately short of milk after a long civil war. But from that humble beginning the project blossomed, enabling African families to learn how to create productive allotments on small plots of land – to produce food to feed the family and provide enough to sell for other necessities.

‘We are a farming expertise charity, training women how to improve the quality of land they farm,’ said Ann. ‘We also offer talks on health and safety, as well as social development – and in more recent times, Covid-19.’

Ripple Effect, exhibitors at CRE Midlands 2023, are now asking UK Christians to twin their gardens to plant hope for a family in Migori, Kenya. A £60 donation provides three years training in sustainable organic farming, beginning with a small kitchen garden which the families are encouraged to set up and use as a small business which can also provide for others.

‘Not only that, but the families helped are encouraged to share what they have learned with neighbours and communities, creating a ripple effect across rural Africa,’ explained Ann.

‘Families learn to build productive farms and adapt to the effects of the climate crisis. Women and people with different needs and abilities get a greater voice and influence in their communities. Farmers learn enterprise skills and become resilient entrepreneurs, in charge of their own futures.’

She pointed out that UK donors not only gets the pleasure of knowing they are giving a new start to a family in a rural district of Kenya, but also receive a sustainable wooden plaque to mount in their own garden, a vegetable growing guide from no-dig expert Charles Dowding, and wildflower seeds to give a colourful annual reminder of the help they have given to others. In the same way, churches with gardens can twin them and display the plaque to those who visit.

• Ripple Effect are on stand F7 at CRE Midlands

Organisations looking to book a stand at CRE Midlands 23 should contact Carol Malpass 0161 250 2467 (E: carol@creonline.co.uk) or James Batterbee 0161 250 2306 (E: james@creonline.co.uk).

Click to view the latest floorplan and price list for available stands

Visitor registration for CRE Midlands 23 will begin in the Spring