This Thanksgiving, my family will gather around the table to celebrate the season and give thanks. My heart swells with gratitude for my home and who I share it with.
As I count my blessings, I am reminded of the abundance we enjoy, including the bountiful harvest of food served on our table. Yet, I am also acutely aware of those who are less fortunate. Many people within our own community do not have the same reason to give thanks.
House of Harvest is a story worth being told. It is an embodiment of hope, love, and unity that traces its roots back to a modest school food pantry. What was once a passion project has transformed into something much larger.
Colton, a Sparkman High School student who has volunteered at the food pantry every Saturday since May, tells me, "It's a beacon of light and a beacon of hope. It is a hub for happiness creating a sense of community in Huntsville."
The House of the Harvest began in August 2015 when the compassionate hearts of Adam and Jennifer Walker, two teachers at Sparkman Middle School, started a food cabinet. They initiated this endeavor with a simple goal: to serve the students of their community who needed food. Little did they know the extraordinary impact they would make and the legacy that was to come.
The House of the Harvest was born as a response to an unmet need. Many students, grappling with food insecurity, relied on this cabinet for sustenance, but soon its contents were not enough to fill the demand that was seen.
In response to this growing need, the teachers of Sparkman Middle School, local churches, and organizations like the Manna House in Huntsville joined forces. A wave of support surged as phone calls flooded in from all Sparkman family schools, each with families in dire need.
During this time, each Wednesday night, congregants of a local church gathered at Sparkman Middle School to pack food boxes and personally deliver them to the doorsteps of students' homes. This extraordinary effort continued for five months, leaving a lasting impact on the community.
As House of the Harvest's influence continued to grow, the Harvest Volunteer Fire Department stepped in, giving their former facility on Wall Triana Road to the Walker family and their mission. On November 1, 2015, House of the Harvest transitioned from a delivery service to an actual physical location.
Adam and Jennifer Walker purchased the Harvest location for a symbolic sum of just $1. For just one dollar, this modest space in the heart of the Harvest community became a source of hope for hundreds of families and a cornerstone of our community.
Since its humble beginnings, House of the Harvest has opened its doors every Saturday, offering breakfast and groceries to anywhere between 150 to 225 families each week.
I spent one Saturday morning talking with patrons, volunteers, and the owner, Adam Walker, to gain more insight into what this organization means to the community.
“God is good to us, and I love it here. It's a great feeling to be providing for my family," says a woman who says she has visited the food pantry 40 times in the last year. She tells me this with a smile on her face and her head held high.
Through tears, another patron shares what House of the Harvest had provided to her. "When you don't have a whole lot of money and can't buy all the food that you need, it means very much. I thought I was just going to have to suffer with what I had. It means that I have something to eat all of the time, not just when I have the money."
As I walk through the line of those seeking food, another visitor assures me through broken English that this place is about more than just food, "For me, it is not only coming here for groceries… here is friendship. People who care about you. More important, here you feel good. You find friendship. I feel happy coming here every Saturday."
Patrons in need are not the only ones who are finding themselves whole from House of the Harvest. Kim, a weekly volunteer, reflects on what her Saturdays spent distributing food have done for her. "I serve here. It gives me a better sense of how blessed I am and how thankful and content I really need to be in my circumstances, no matter what they are."
This Thanksgiving, as we come together with our loved ones, let us hold in our hearts the heartwarming tale of House of the Harvest—a testament to the power of compassion, community, and the capacity of a community to unite in times of need. As we express our gratitude for the abundance we hold in each of our lives, let us also honor the hearts and hands that make our community a haven of unwavering support and love.
Since November 2015, House of the Harvest has fed the community every Saturday. There are no stipulations on who gets fed. If you show up, they will feed you. Adam Walker noted, “That’s the Lord’s imprint. He doesn’t turn any of us away.”
Adam Walker leaves me with a unifying thought as I depart my visit. “The fact that we can come together here as a community. It's not y’all and us. It's just us. We are all going through this together. House of Harvest changed what I believe. It's changed the way I see life. It's changed the way I think about what I want my life to be. It's changed everything about me as a person. It's helped me to real-time experience Jesus in my life. When it's all said and done, what else is there?”