ECC Students Learn About Shemitah and Chesed While Planting in Their Garden

ECC students partnered with GrowTorah to learn about Parshat Behar-Bechukotai. Students and Farmer Spence '08 discussed the mitzvah of Shemitah, which commands that, every seven years, we do not farm our land and instead leave it to the poor. Classes learned that while this mitzvah to leave your farm for the poor is only in Eretz Yisrael, we can donate food from our garden, too! Classes planted spinach, Komatsuna (a Japanese mustard spinach), violas, amaranth, and ice plant flowers. As they worked, they reflected on the positive impact they can have by giving the fruits of their labor to people in need.