About Us

The garden began five years ago when Rev. Berhanu Bekele, the Priest at St. Mary's, and his congregation, almost all of whom are Ethiopian refugees, bought a former fish farm on 10 acres just South of the Lee Roy Selmon Expressway. 

Pastor Bekele met Pastor Germain, Pastor of Global Refuge Community Church in Temple Terrace at a workshop. They shared the same vision and immediately began working together on idea to support refugees.

Many of the refugees came from farming backgrounds. Many were from Sudan, Burma, Congo and etc. Suddenly, six acres of the  land was theirs to grow any  crops they chose. They could be part of a larger community and enjoy an open space for their children to play without fear.

They worked the earth until yams, cabbage, onion, broccoli, collard greens, fruit trees and herb gardens covered the grounds. They named it St. Mary's Tampa Bay Refugee Gardens and in 2013 won a grant from the Office of Refugee Resettlement for $85,000 through 2017. The funding paid for the food program, seeds, crops, livestock costs, salary for supporting church staff and a farm training program for refugees.

The hope is to create self-sustaining farmers with crops to sell. The Garden has also partnered with the University of South Florida's Departments of Anthropology and Engineering. With funding from the Office of Community Engagement and help from student volunteers, Dr. Roberta Baer is studying dietary habits of Burmese refugees and Dr. Maya Trotz helped build the greenhouses, irrigation, and rain harvesting systems.