What a day! Shay and I rolled up around 11:30 this morning, and as per usual, it felt like walking into a neighborhood block party. Jeff had already been there since 10 AM getting things organized. Folks were already gathered around our produce stand, chatting it up and checking out the fresh harvest.

You know what I love most about these Sunday garden parties? How they’ve become this natural meeting place for the neighbors in the area where I grew up as a kid. Today we had 11 different families stop by for free veggies, and every single conversation started the same way: “Oh, I live just two blocks that way!” or “I’m right on Toepfer that way!” These aren’t random people driving from across the metro – these are our actual neighbors. Some heard about us from other neighbors, others spotted us while driving by. Either way, boom – instant community connection.

New Friends, Big Impact

We had some incredible new volunteers today, including this teenager who needed volunteer hours for school. She ran home to grab a mask because of all the dust, then came back and mowed our entire property. I’m not even kidding – she figured out how to navigate that mower like a pro and if you ask Shay – she did a better job than I would have! There was just a tiny strip left that she didn’t have time to finish, so I jumped in to wrap it up. Now everything looks absolutely beautiful.

Our friend Beth from Whole Foods showed up to volunteer, which is always a treat. She spent a good chunk of time working with Shay pruning our tomato plants. It’s so cool when our extended garden family comes together like this.

Harvest Highlights & Future Planning

Jeff had an awesome haul today – peppers, tomatoes, cucamelon, cucumbers, and some seriously impressive okra. Plus, our friend Steph from the Eastpointe Community Garden brought over some of her “absolutely mind bending pineapple tomatoes” (That’s fancy talk for Jeff really liked them) from her home garden. Those brought huge smiles to people’s faces at the produce stand and started some fun conversations too!

Lauren was out there teaching new volunteers how to harvest properly, and we all did some serious brainstorming about future improvements and ways to enhance what we’re already doing. Let us know what you would like to see in the future. We also got some fall planting done – red radish, carrot, and basil went into the ground.

Lighting Up the Night

Jeff installed some sweet solar-powered spotlights on our South Warren Community Garden wooden sign, plus we added two more solar lights on the corners of the produce stand. Now our little corner of Toepfer Road is going to glow in the evenings – pretty cool way to make sure people can find us even after sunset!

The Season’s Bittersweet Turn

As Jeff mentioned, there’s something a little bittersweet about these late September garden parties. The season’s winding down, but honestly? Days like today remind me why we do this work.

Perfect weather, great company, meaningful connections with neighbors – couldn’t have asked for better conditions to be outside, hands in the dirt, chatting with friends and neighbors.

Ya know, it’s funny – I never thought I’d be the “gardening” guy. I’m not exactly known for keeping houseplants alive, and my green thumb is more like a slightly greenish beige thumb. But there’s something magical about how growing a few tomatoes in an empty lot can bring together neighbors from completely different walks of life, all working toward making things a little less terrible in the world. Plus, who doesn’t love a good BLT?

Come Join Us Next Sunday!

Our Sunday garden parties at South Warren Community Garden run from 10 AM to 2 PM at 13690 Toepfer Rd., Warren, MI. No experience needed, no registration required – just show up and become part of something pretty awesome. We provide the tools, you bring yourself, and together we keep growing this incredible community one Sunday at a time.