Harvest of Hope

Harvest of Hope is the ecumenical study, worship, and action mission trip program of the Society of St. Andrew. It is designed to educate youth and adults about the problem of hunger. At Harvest of Hope, you will work in fields gleaning food for the hungry, study hunger issues, participate in Christian worship, and have fun! A variety of events take place throughout the year: week-long retreats for senior high youth (completed grades 9-12) and their adult sponsors; weekend retreats for junior high youth (completed grades 6-8) and their adult sponsors; a weekend retreat for college groups and young adults (ages 18-30); and weekend intergenerational retreats for ages 10 to 100!

The Harvest of Hope Experience

There are several key aspects of the Harvest of Hope experience that work together to form an unforgettable, life-changing experience:

Gleaning: Harvest of Hope participants glean crops each morning and donate the produce to food assistance programs such as food banks and soup kitchens.

Study: Participants learn about hunger in the world and here in the United States. Through a variety of educational tools, coupled with the physical labor of gleaning, they begin to see that one person really can make a difference in the life of someone who is hungry.

Worship: Through nondenominational worship, participants grow in Christian fellowship and community. They learn about Christian responsibility toward the poor and disenfranchised. Worship helps bring into focus the relationship between faith and service to the poor.

Meals: Good nutrition is stressed at Harvest of Hope. One meal is a hunger awareness experience.

Fellowship: Participants form strong bonds of friendship through this fun experience of working, learning, and joining in fellowship together.

Commitment: Harvest of Hope is just the beginning! Participants are encouraged to take what they learn back home with them so that they might impact their families, communities, and churches. Harvest of Hope challenges people of faith to respond to the call of the Gospel to feed the poor, and to make service a lifestyle rather than a once a year event.