Walking down the 100 block of Woodside Avenue in West Lawn, you’ll come across an unassuming red brick house at the corner of Noble Street.
Out front, there is a large, wooden stand. Its two shelves are brimming with produce — carrots, eggplants, spinach, cucumbers and corn.
From that standpoint there’s no indication where the fresh food came from. But wander around the corner and down Noble Street a few paces and it becomes clear.
In the home’s backyard is a lush garden, no bigger than a pair of parking spaces. Although small, the swath of land is remarkably productive.
The garden — cultivated, maintained and harvested by members from the nearby West Lawn United Methodist Church — is home to more than 20 varieties of fruits and vegetables filling nearly every inch of available space.
From left, Master Gardener David Helwig of Spring Township, Maribel Romero of Sinking Spring and Linda Yeager of Riverview Park stock the vegetable stand at the West Lawn United Methodist Church Community Garden, 100 Woodside Ave. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
Kelly Rissmiller, director of leadership development and volunteer recruitment for the church, said the concept for the garden blossomed out of conversations among its members about what they could do in the backyard of the Woodside Avenue home owned by the church.
The house is used for meeting space for a variety of programs the church offers, but the outdoor space wasn’t being used.
“It was just a grassy backyard that served no purpose,” she said. “We wanted to find a way to make it something meaningful for the community and the idea of the garden came out of those discussions.”
So in the spring of 2025, the church launched a new Community Garden Ministry with a purpose to bring people together to transform the 300-square-foot plot into a garden where all the produce grown would be given to community members for free.
Some members of the church helped construct raised beds for the garden while others lent a helping hand building the roadside stand.
“It really has become something the whole congregation has gotten behind and contributed to in some way,” Rissmiller said. “But there are 23 members who share the responsibility of maintaining the garden — taking turns each week to make sure the plants are watered, the weeds are cleared and the produce is harvested.”
The crops grown this summer include cucumbers, squash, onions, broccoli, corn, watermelon, eggplant, arugula, spinach, carrots, kohlrabi, red beets, cabbage, strawberries, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, green peppers, cauliflower, lettuce, sugar snap peas and hot chili peppers.
They also grow herbs like thyme, sage, lavender, basil, parsley, rosemary and lemongrass.
Master Gardener David Helwig of Spring Township, right, and Kelly Rismiller of Exeter Township, director of leadership and volunteer recruitment, harvest vegetables at the West Lawn United Methodist Church Community Garden, 100 Woodside Ave. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
Rissmiller credited member Dave Helwig with tackling the complex logistics of planning the garden.
“He took a look at the space and came up with ways to maximize every inch of it,” she said. “He really took it to the next level very quickly. He had the expertise to help us make the garden a reality.”
Helwig, a Master Gardener, said it was a task he was happy to undertake.
“I love gardening,” he said. “And I love teaching others what I know.”
Helwig said he was excited about the possibilities of what the team could create.
“My garden at home is around the same size as this so I had some insight to share about how to maximize the space that we had,” he said.
Helwig isn’t solely responsible for the success of his garden, with members of a dedicated gardening ministry team all pitching in to ensure its fruitfulness.
Rissmiller said the whole team comes together four times throughout the season to tackle the bigger tasks like preparing the garden for planting before spring and winterizing the space when the weather turns cold.
She said some members have experience gardening but many are getting their first opportunity to learn what growing produce is like. She noted there are two families in particular that lack the space for a garden at their own homes and are using the garden as a teaching tool for their children.
“They love that they can come here and learn what growing fresh food is like,” she said.
Linda Yeager of Riverview Park hangs onions on a drying rack at the West Lawn United Methodist Church Community Garden, 100 Woodside Ave. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
Linda Yeager became a member of the team this summer after seeing how much the garden was producing in such a short amount of time.
“It impressed me so much when I came here for the first time,” said Yeager, a Master Gardener. “I think the team has done a wonderful job creating something so big in such a small space. This is a tremendous community outreach program.”
Yeager said what she loves most about the garden is being able to share what they grow with the community.
Maribel Romero said the garden ministry was right up her alley.
“I love gardening so I knew this was something I wanted to be a part of,” she said. “I feel grateful to be able to help other people.”
Romero said there was a personal motivation as well.
“I like learning about ways I can improve my own garden,” she said. “There is so much more that I can do at home that I never thought possible. It really is amazing what we have been able to accomplish.”
Rismiller said the garden has already become a beloved piece of the West Lawn community.
“People who are simply walking their dogs, people who are visiting the library across the street, people who are driving down the road may stop to grab items,” she said.
And that’s the whole idea, Rismiller said, to create a space where individuals can learn, grow and connect. That mission, she said, is only going to continue to grow.
Rissmiller said that as the garden matures the team hopes to offer additional educational opportunities for people of all ages. They can host workshops on backyard gardening, the benefits of composting, on food preservation and much more.
Kelly Rismiller of Exeter Township, director of leadership and volunteer recruitment, harvests vegetables at the West Lawn United Methodist Church Community Garden, 100 Woodside Ave. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
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