Cultivating hope

The old adage "If you give a man a fish, he will eat for a day, but if you teach a man to fish, he will eat for life" inspired a program that drew more than 30 volunteers to St. Paul Lutheran Church in Jackson on Tuesday to package vegetable seeds to be shipped around the world through a not-for-profit program called Hope Seeds.

"One of the basic things we do is we package an amount of seed that is sufficient for a family," said Luella Franke, Hope Seeds board member. "We also send them the vegetables that they grow, but our purpose is to help them feed themselves. We also teach them how to save the seed from the best plant so they have that seed to grow again. If they will do what we teach them, that family pack of seeds should feed a family of four for a lifetime."

Families typically receive 10 to 15 varieties of seed at a time. Franke said the group has provided billions of people with seed throughout its 10-year history.

"We have sent 8 billion packages of seed to 47 countries," she said. "We package good garden seeds that have germination. Whatever we send them will grow."

As she instructed new seed packers Tuesday, she was mindful of protecting that quality. Volunteers were taught to not touch the seed with their fingers, not to lick their fingers while working with the pack and not to blow air into the packs because it could get moisture in the packs and ruin the seeds. If a seed was dropped on the floor, it was discarded.

Volunteers measure one-half teaspoon of tomato seeds for Hope Seeds packets.

Tuesday's crop of the day was Roma tomatoes. Volunteers carefully placed 1/2 teaspoon of seeds into tiny plastic bags. The exact destination of the packs was not known.

"We don't always know where our seed will go," Franke said. "That is determined by the requests we have and where the need is the greatest."

She said Haiti is likely to receive some of the seed packaged Tuesday.

Because Hope Seeds is a Christian organization, Franke said they also send religious messages with each pack.

Although they only have offices in Bertrand, Mo., and Bradenton, Fla., part of what makes Hope Seeds a success is its global network.

"We send through someone we know in those countries," Franke said. "We don't just send it."

For example, she said, in Uganda the organization works with orphanages, not only providing children with desperately needed food but with a future vocation.

"In some countries, the median age is maybe 27," Franke said. "If we don't teach these children how to do it, they won't survive."

She said the education Hope Seeds provides not only includes planting and harvesting, but also information on insecticide, drip irrigation and adapting crops to different climates.

Mothers who receive the seed, Franke said, have reported that the infusion of vitamin-packed vegetables into their children's diets have made them much healthier.

Shirley Aufdenberg of Jackson said she thinks it is her duty as a human being to help others and that packing seed was a great way to do that.

"Even though we can't all go to other countries to help, we can all help right here at home, to send seed that will help them feed their families," she said. "I think we take for granted the blessings that we have. It is good to spread them to other people."

Hope Seeds sponsors packing events the second and fourth Tuesday of the month in Jackson, the third Thursday of the month in Bertrand and the third Monday of the month in Union, Mo. More information about Hope Seeds is available at hopeseeds.org, or by calling Franke at 573-788-9295.