Old Quebec church gets new lease on life as greenhouse to combat food insecurity
CBC
In the early days of the pandemic, Jean Champagne was enjoying a family dinner when he had an idea for a way to help combat food insecurity in the Beauce region of Quebec.
Food prices were going up and vegetables and fruits were becoming less affordable.
"My wife said, 'we have to do something,'" said the Beauceville resident.
Their daughter Marie was a social worker at the time. She is now the general manager of the food bank Moisson Beauce, and she told them the best way to help was through fresh produce.
The family launched Cultiver pour partager (growing to share) shortly after.
Run by volunteers, the non-profit grows food in the summer and collects vegetables from local farms that would otherwise go to waste — donating its harvest to Moisson Beauce.
Last week in Beauceville, Que., Champagne signed a contract for what will be the organization's new headquarters — an old church — purchased for $1.
Champagne said everything fell perfectly into place.
They had just started looking for a space to store the fresh vegetables in 2021 when Champagne learned about a church up for sale in Saint-Alfred, a small town about 100 kilometres southeast of Quebec City.
"Our priest called me in the morning, [asking] 'Jean do you think that you can need sometime in the future, a building?" he said.
The Sainte-Famille-de-Beauce parish wanted to sell the building, which was built in 1931 and needed some repairs. It was deconsecrated in November 2022.
Champagne said he took it as a spiritual sign. "That's what had to happen, that [was] amazing."
The sales contract includes clauses that the building must be used for activities that align with the Catholic church values.
"Allowing it to be used for just any purpose was out of the question," said Jean-Denys Rancourt, the president of the parish.
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