Four years ago, Daniel Chiriac, who leads Agape Church in Sinoe, Romania, bought 4,000 square metres of land and set up an irrigation system to grow crops as a community venture. He used his own wages to do this, having got the idea after working for a year in a greenhouse in Spain.
To develop this project even further, Daniel wanted to build a polytunnel. The polytunnel, which is fully recyclable, protects the crops and allows them to be harvested out of season, if necessary. This enables the crops to be sold after harvest time when the market is less saturated.
Currently, it is just Daniel and his family who are maintaining the land and this is taking up precious time needed to serve in the church, so he needs a bigger team. Daniel’s plan is to reinvest the income generated to provide jobs for church members. Having worked abroad, Daniel understands what a blessing it is to not leave your family in order to financially support them. Daniel hopes that the work will inspire other similar projects in the area, creating even more job opportunities in Sinoe.
TEN is delighted to provide Daniel with the grant needed to grow his vision of sustainability. The first polytunnel has been built, complete with irrigation system and Daniel hopes to build more. Funds generated from this project will not only provide income but anything that remains can be reinvested into the project and the church’s ministry. And Daniel has been tithing the harvest too, by giving away ten percent of the land’s produce to families in need. As Daniel works to bless others, we’re confident that God will make the harvest grow.
