Obesity is a persistent public health challenge in Kentucky, with areas of eastern Kentucky facing some of the highest incidences in the nation. Obesity rates are compounded by ongoing food insecurity and healthy food accessibility challenges. Food insecurity rates in rural communities, particularly in parts of Kentucky, are higher compared to urban counterparts. Feeding Kentucky reports 1 in 7 adults and 1 in 6 children face hunger, with counties in Eastern Kentucky experiencing higher prevalence compared to the state. This is consistent in Martin County where 1 in 5 adults and 1 in 4 children are considered food insecure and focus of the current Centers for Disease Control High Obesity Program (CDC HOP) project, which is preparing the enter the final year of project funding in October 2022. The HOP project aims to address health disparities by creating sustainable environmental and system changes to support healthier lifestyle behaviors. The disparities many community members experience illuminate the need for collaborative partnerships engaging community members and organizations to support healthy food access and minimize food insecurity in this limited resource community.  

Due to the tenuous geography and climactic environment of the Appalachian region, large scale farming and agricultural opportunities are limited. Coupled with the isolation and persistent poverty prevalence of this rural county, quality and affordable produce is often scarce. Previous efforts to initiate a community garden had been thwarted and stalled due to the lack of community buy in and COVID-19 pandemic, further, engagement in farming and gardening practices have steadily declined in the county. However, a new community partner joined the Martin County Wellness Coalition in August 2021, reigniting the possibility of supporting and developing a garden for the community. The Wellness Coalition, established as part of the HOP project and community-based centric approach, helps guides the development and implementation of projects associated with the HOP project in the county. 

Through the ongoing efforts of the Wellness Coalition and HOP team, this community partner, a newly appointed pastor at a local church and recently relocated resident to the county, expressed interest in cultivating and supporting a community garden thereby offering the necessary organizational ownership a successful community garden would require in Martin County. In collaboration with the local CES Agriculture Agent and the Grow Appalachia programming currently underway in the county, the HOP team coordinated the development of a community garden plan to be presented to the church congregation at the beginning of the new year. The church congregation was supportive of the community garden initiative when the plan was presented in January 2022, offering positive feedback for future systems and environmental enhancements as part of the HOP project. The church body identified a name for the garden- His Garden- further reinforcing the positive ownership and pride this agricultural endeavor would provide. 

The adoption of the garden by a well-established and committed organization and leader has facilitated the growing, maintaining, and harvesting processes of the community garden to provide healthy produce for individuals and families in need of nutritional supplementation. Although His Garden is still in the early stages of harvesting, over 150 volunteer labor hours have been contributed to the garden in just seven months by church and community members. The comprehensive initial plan, ongoing technical support and communication, and ability to provide startup supplies and equipment for the garden from the HOP team and project funding has been instrumental to the preliminary success of the garden thus far. So far, His Garden has coordinated two distributions to the community, and intends to increase both frequency and amount as the harvests increase. The garden will remain operational throughout the year and consistently harvested to be distributed through monthly, and eventually weekly, food drives. 

The goal of this food system enhancement will be to combat the growing food insecurity rates exhibited by families in the community and support expanded access to healthy foods. The Martin County Extension Office is committed to supporting other community organizations in these sustained efforts. Extension Agents in Martin County, the HOP team, and the overall mission of the Wellness Coalition is to support PSE initiatives for continued health behavior change in their community. Future initiatives with His Garden plan to integrate food preparation to expand the impact an increase in healthy produce provides to families.