November 2009

a monthly e-news publication

Donate Today and help Koinonia to reach the goal $180,000 for programs and operation $150,000 for the new Meeting House Or make a one-time donation: Donate securely Online, but if you prefer, you may call us to make a donation by phone at 877-738-1741 or by mail at Koinonia Farm, 1324 GA Hwy 49 S, Americus, GA 31719 Thank you for your generosity! Did You Know? We recently received a letter from the City of Americus, announcing that the Mayor and City Council voted unanimously to place Clarence Jordan’s name on the Walk of Fame in downtown Americus. The reason, they noted, was “his outstanding contributions to civil rights and the founding of Koinonia Farms.” Although we’re aware that we still have such a distance toward fulfilling the dreams of those who began the journey, we’re thrilled to see that Americus is taking part in recognizing those who struggled to live life in such a way that all are honored, regardless of skin color or other prejudices. The ceremony honoring Clarence and other inductees will be held Nov. 15, 2009 at 2 p.m. in downtown Americus. We’d love for you to join us for the celebration! Many of you know that our director Bren Dubay is also a playwright. We're happy to announce that Georgia Southwestern University's Theatre Department in Americus is producing her play “Dancing With the Dead.” A mystery set in 1884 New Orleans, the script explores worldly power (mammon) in a struggle with kingdom of God power (the Beatitudes). “It's a drama with funny moments,” Bren said. The production runs November 12, 13 and 14 at 8:00 p.m. and at 2:30 p.m. on the 15th. For ticket information call GSW Theatre Department. Also, Art Within, a theatre and film production company based in Georgia, has invited Bren as one of six writers to participate in its prestigious Writer's Lab this year. An honor for Bren, she'll be working with the artistic staff to develop five ideas for film scripts. Doing more writing is one way Bren hopes to serve the God Movement and Koinonia. We look forward to reading those five screenplays when you're finished with them, Bren! Reaching Out The fall Koinonia Farm Chronicle should be in the mail to you this week! October 29 of last month marked the 40th anniversary of founding member Clarence Jordan’s death. This issue contains a special tribute to him and several excerpts from his works. You can check it out online here. Be sure to pass along a copy of this memorable edition to your friends. Yikes! Our catalog is a little late going out this year (it’s in the mail), but don’t have to wait for it to arrive to order. Browse the catalog Online! You can print out an order form and mail it to the farm or go to our Online store and order your favorite Koinonia goodies today. It is our mail-order business that provides the dollars and cents to keep our work going. Please consider Koinonia the place to shop for all your holiday gift giving. Order by December 10 to assure arrival by Christmas. Our Circle of Friends and Seasonal Interns celebrated the start of fall with our friends at the Kauffman's Farm in Montezuma, Ga. The visit was complete with a picnic, walk through the pumpkin patch, and lots of fellowship and storytelling. The Circle has stayed active this year with picnics, trips to the Strawberry Patch, various other outings and, as always, sharing time together and friendship each Thursday morning. Pictured is the group at Kauffman’s farm.

By now, you have received Koinonia’s fall letter of appeal. Even though we have until June 30, 2010 to reach the goal of $180,000 for programs and operations and $150,000 for construction of the new Meeting House, we are very aware that a sizeable portion of the overall goal will be donated between now and December 31, 2009. Thank you for taking a moment to mail the return envelope or to donate Online. Every gift helps no matter the amount. Whether you give monthly, quarterly, bi-annually or annually, know how deeply grateful we are.

At the Farm

We added eight sheep to the animal count this month. They’re such cute creatures, but they’ll let you know when they’re not happy—they stomp at you! It reminds us of the many times Christ compares his Body to little sheep. We’re so adorable, yet so imperfect! Look for photos of the sheep in next month’s e-news. They’ve been good company to Martin, one of our Great Pyrenees pups we wrote about last month. Pictured, Martin tries to look his best for the camera.

Our maintenance crew has worked really hard to lighten the load during pecan harvest season. In Plant One, we've constructed a new pit to hold pecans. A series of ladders carry the pecans from the pit into a large hopper, then to the Sizer and into boxes. They're then transferred to Plant Two, where they are washed, cracked, and dried. After being hand sorted, they are sent on to the bakery, where Geneva Brown puts lots of love into them and passes them on to the Products team, who passes them on to you! With these ladders and new equipment, we'll be able to harvest our pecans much faster. We're also able to offer Custom cracking and sorting. So give us a call when you're ready to harvest!

After fencing in the nearly 80-ft pasture for our grass-fed beef cattle project, we blessed the field in honor of David Castle, our friend and brother who died last August. We were thankful that Ellie Castle and other board members and dear friends were able to be present for the ceremony. Lewis Overholt and Norris Harris led us in word, prayer, and song as we dedicated the field and asked God’s blessing on both the land and the animals it nourishes. Pictured is the group out by the field during the dedication ceremony.

The first weekend of October got the month off to a great start, as we welcomed our third School for Conversion crowd. Participants traveled from all over to share from their experiences, and to learn from our way of life here at Koinonia. The days were full of discussion sessions, shared meals and worship times; nightfall brought fellowship and singing around the fire pit. We discovered the musical talents of the group, and one of the many highlights was a spontaneous square dance to a lively bluegrass rendition of “Nothing but the Blood of Jesus”! We plan to make the School for Conversion a bi-annual event, and we will be hosting another gathering April 16-18, 2010. For more information, e-mail sarah@koinoniapartners.org

Coming Soon

Fall is here, and you know what that means—time for harvesting! We’d love to have you come help us this year in the harvesting and sorting of our pecans and other crops, and in packing and shipping boxes all over the world during the holiday rush. It’s always a wonderful time to see our Snow Birds, as we call them, and other friends who come to join us for this special season. E-mail hospitality@koinoniapartners.org to schedule your visit.

We are now taking registrations for our winter 2010 Permaculture Design Course. This year’s course was an amazing success, and we are looking forward to welcoming another enthusiastic group of learners from February 8-19, 2010. There are still a couple of work-trade slots open, and we're sure they are going to fill up fast. For more information please contact sarah@koinoniapartners.org.