Lubbock in detail July 8th-11th

Above: Second Baptist Lubbock Senior Pastor, Ryon Price and Student Pastor Ben Ondrak.... and Go Now Missions Team

We thought we would catch you up to speed specifically on what we have been up to the last several days......

July 8th, we left the World Hunger Relief Farm to head for Lubbock, TX. This journey would not be sufficient without a stopping quickly for lunch at Steve's Market and Deli. What wonderful food!! It was prepared fresh and the owner said they did their best to incorporate local and organic ingredients. This shop also sold multiple fair-trade and organic items including tea and coffee. We were joined at this dinner by Kate Blackshear, BSM Director at Howard Payne University. She introduced us to a couple of women that are on the Keep Brownwood Beautiful committee. We shared with them what our trip was about and they insisted we follow them to the community garden they have helped to get started in Brownwood. What a garden!!!! The city chose to use some of their stimulus package money for a community garden that is phenomenal - and they are not able to provide fresh, organic produce to community members.

From this stop we pressed onward to Lubbock, TX where we would spend time with the Southwest Plains Food Bank.

While in Lubbock, TX July 8th - 11th, we were hosted by the Southwest Plains Food Bank Director, David Weaver, and staff person Vangela Perryman. The moment we arrived in Lubbock the staff had a BBQ dinner prepared for us to eat and welcomed us with hugs and smiles to begin our time with them. It was obvious from our first greeting that their jobs at the Food Bank were more than jobs to them.

The next day we visited various aspects of the work the Food Bank does in the city of Lubbock: Kid's Cafe providing nutritious summer meals at summer feeding sites for children that need it, the youth worker program called the Grubb Farm that provided part-time jobs to qualifying youth while teaching them how to farm and provide fresh fruits and vegetables to families in the community and finally, the main area of the food bank. In each of these settings we encountered folks that loved their jobs and believed in what they did every day. The staff shared story after story of folks whose lives had been changed by the food bank, including their own!

The Grubb Farm mentioned above.....

The wagon (strategically built by engineer students at Texas Tech) used by the Grubb Farm Youth to take produce to the Downtown Art/Farmer's Market to sell. Amazing!!!

We walked away realizing the power in the love and care that exists behind a vision...... This food bank is successful because they put people and quality food first.

We also spent time with Cal at Apply Country Orchards which was wonderful!! He is working to help make the SNAP program more easily accessible for folks at all Farmer's Markets in TX.


After lots of FREE and WONDERFUL meals from Vangela's Household, David Weaver and other friends in Lubbock, we concluded our experience with a visit to the downtown Art and Farmer's market to purchase fresh food specifically from the Grubb Farm Teens to support their upcoming trip to the Rooted in Community Conference. They had been saving to go on this trip but the recent rain in Lubbock flooded their farm and they were not able to sell or use much of hte produce they had been hoping to harvest :(. The produce we bought from them supplied our future lunches and snacks on the road and in San angelo!

On July 11th, we worshipped with friends at Second Baptist Church...sharing in the College Sunday School Class and the class of David Weaver about our trip thus far. Both the Student Minister, Ben Ondrak and Senior Pastor, Ryon Price.

That Sunday so happened to be focused on the story of the Good Samaritan from scripture. It was a convicting and beautiful message that seemed too fitting for the questions and thoughts we had on the trip to that point. It was a welcoming and beautiful worship experience...Thank you Second Baptist!!

Thank you Lubbock and Southwest Plains Food Bank for being so hospitable and teaching us how to lead and run food services and ministries without losing focus.