With what’s going on in healthcare, there are many things up in the air, especially when it comes to the health of African Americans. But instead of waiting to see what Congress or the government is going to do, some are taking their health in their own hands and coming together.
Just outside of Raleigh, North Carolina, there’s a little town of Conetoe — population 300 and predominately African American. The town is surrounded by farmland, but the nearest grocery store is 10 miles away, making it one of the country’s many “food deserts,” where fresh, nutritious food is not readily available.
“The cause of the funerals was was poor access to healthcare and poor access to affordable healthy food.” That’s where Rev. Richard Joyner, a local pastor, stepped in and stepped up.
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So Joyner started a community garden and enlisted local children to help him care for it. Today, his nonprofit, the Conetoe Family Life Center, manages more than 20 plots of land, including one 25-acre site.
“Diabetes, high blood pressure — when we first got started, we counted 30 funerals in one year,” Joyner said. “I couldn’t ignore it because I was spending more time in funerals than anything else.” This community garden directly impacts both the food desert issue and the death of his members.
More than 80 young people help Joyner plan, plant, and harvest nearly 50,000 pounds of fresh food a year. Much of this produce is given away to local residents. But the students also sell the food — including their own brand of honey — to businesses and restaurants, raising money for school supplies and scholarships.
CNN talked with Joyner about his work and the impact it’s had on his life. He was even nominated as a 2015 CNN Hero. It’s hard to believe that something so great started with death.
“I was literally exhausted from the funerals, and I was asking God, ‘What are we going to do?’ And I really heard a voice saying, ‘Look around you.’ I looked around and…