Connie Derman with Joel and Jayi Bray and Greg Vafiades. PHOTO BY JOSHUA KODIS

Like manna from heaven, the poor and hungry are supplementing their standard diets of canned and boxed foods with fresh fruits and vegetables thanks to the efforts of the Shining Light Garden Foundation.

As supporters of the organization gathered for their annual fundraising dinner at the Bent Pine Country Club, they did so with the knowledge that their contributions are vitally needed by the Shining Light Garden Foundation, which is funded solely by donations and grants.

The nonprofit started as a backyard venture in 2008 when Joel Bray began growing more than he could eat, and started to donate his excess bounty. It has since grown into a 20-acre farm, tended to 100 percent by volunteers, who plant and harvest thousands of bushels of fresh vegetables and fruit that are given to local food pantries and soup kitchens, veterans and senior organizations.

Nothing is sold; the abundance of sweet potatoes, zucchini, yellow squash, tomatoes, cucumbers, rutabagas and broccoli, mangos, avocados and even miracle fruit, said to mask the metallic taste of foods associated with chemotherapy, is all given away.

Additionally, the colorful flowers they grow on the farm are given to seniors at nursing homes and patients at the VNA Hospice House.

During a cocktail hour, guests perused a wide array of auction items before sitting down to enjoy a delicious dinner at tables set with centerpieces of spring flowers from the garden, made by the event committee, led by Connie Derman.

“Shining Light Garden has a new motto: Fighting Nutritional Poverty. And we’re trying to make a dent in it, but the need keeps growing,” said Greg Vafiades, community liaison.

With the ever-increasing need for nutritional vegetables, volunteers are always needed to assist with the planting, weeding and harvesting of the crops. Hoping to seed interest within the next generations, students from schools and colleges are always invited to take part.

“The volunteer base is the backbone of the organization, and the arm. We’re so appreciative of the people of the dirt,” Vafiades added.

“I want to thank everyone for coming out. It’s a tremendous blessing to myself and to the garden and I really want to thank you from the bottom of my heart,” said Bray.

For more information, visit ShiningLightGarden.org.

Photos by Joshua Kodis