Seed of Unity Garden Lights
By: Frank Taylor
Debra Sykes received spiritual orders to feed the community as an outreach project. Debra acknowledged the call and moved forward to create an impact in Winona, MS. She received support from local churches. Winona is the midpoint between Jackson, MS and Memphis, Tenn, just off interstate fifty-five. Winona is the infamous place where Civil Rights Activist Fannie Lou Hamer police was arrested on June 9, 1963. Mrs. Hammer and cohorts were returning from South Carolina after participating in SCLC’s Citizenship School. The bus stopped at a rest area in Winona to allow several members to use the bathrooms. You should google Fannie Lou Hamer and read this unrestrained episode in history.
Debra initially started the garden project in the city of Winona on less than an acre of land behind a neighbor’s home with moderate success. The initial name of the project was Seed of Unity Garden. Four years later they added lights and created the acronym (SOUL) Seed of Unity Garden Lights. This helped propel Debra and her siblings to gain access to eleven acres of land through their paternal great-grandfather, Mr. Price Gayden. This swath of land is situated in the southeast corner of Carroll County. Debra said, “This transition allowed the project to expand and add more activities for the youth. We use this project as a teaching tool to educate families’ minds, hearts, and feed their bodies with locally grown vegetables.” Debra shared her SOUL vision with church members and others. Debra’s nephew Keyon Gayden bought into the vision by providing labor and teaching character-building skills. Keyon echoed the mantra ofgiving back to your community and to those individuals who are in need. Debra reiterated SOUL’s purpose, “We are building relationships and bridges with our children as they progress in adulthood. They will have learned how to plant and grow vegetables to feed their families. SOUL provides a mechanism to establish trust with the older community members by working together as team members on the farm. We plant a variety of vegetables including crooked and straight-neck squash, tomatoes, rattlesnake pole beans, zucchini, corn, sweet potatoes, bell peppers, banana peppers and hot peppers.” Seed of Unity Garden Lights participates in the local farmers market in Winona. The Winston County Self Help Cooperative provides technical support to SOUL. Mayla Odom, WCSHC said, “We champion this project because of their efforts to manage our natural resources. This is helping to save rural America.”
