Brothers James and Bobby Forbes, along with friends Phil Hearn and Matt Stoyanov, took on the task of making a difference in the lives of people living in a neighborhood some would describe as decayed.
They created an urban farm in The Ville, where access to good food is limited and incomes are thin. They began the process in November of 2013, in a community garden grown wild.
“Right now we’re trying to wrap our heads around the economic impact small urban micro-farms could have on neighborhoods like The Ville,” James Forbes says. “The overhead is low, the hours are long, but the work could put money in people’s pockets in an area where work is scarce.”
For the Forbes brothers, Hearn and Stoyanov, the journey has been one of discovery and of faith. As they proceed, the men employ the practice of discernment, a Jesuit tradition, in their decisions. “Discernment tempers actions with wisdom,” James Forbes says. “We consider our decisions to include all peoples, even those who create obstacles in the path. As long as we come from an honest place in your daily meetings with people, we can sleep at night.”