In a news segment on WUNC, the local National Public Radio affiliate, Rev. Grace Hackney discusses the unlikely formation of Anathoth Community Garden in the racially-charged town of Cedar Grove, N.C.  A murder served as a catalyst for black and white residents to come together to create food for the community, but distrust on both sides made for a rocky start.

Grace recently transitioned from her post as pastor of Cedar Grove UMC (one of Thriving Rural Communities’ Partner Churches) to Mt. Bethel UMC in Bahama, N.C.  But she distinctly recalls her early days in Cedar Grove seven years ago:

“Coming to this part of Orange County, after having lived in northern Chatham County and going to school at Duke, I thought I had a good sense of what life in North Carolina was like, but I didn’t,” she says.  “It was like coming to a different country. This is a very different part of North Carolina.”

Read the story or download the audio recording. 


Kate Rugani
Communications Manager
Thriving Rural Communities