ECHO

 I'd like to introduce you to ECHO  (Educational Concerns for Hunger Organization).  Or reintroduce you if you read this post last January.  You won't be seeing sleeping beauty in this post.  Cause...well...she slept through it.

See the sign above? My dad installed it this winter.  He and my mom volunteer at ECHO during the winter months.  My dad does maintenance, and my mom gardening.  But my sister-in-law works there full-time.  

 My SIL gave the guided tour.  Because as you see in the picture before this one, Guided Tours Only.  And they are not normally on golf carts.  We were lucky.  Or we had a sleeping baby.  Whichever.

 This place is so amazing.  They do so many things to improve the lives of people around the world.  This building is "appropriate technology".  They work with everyday things found in/available in third world countries.  Think trash.

 There is a section dedicated to ways to pump and purify water.

 And there are animals.  Truthfully they are my favorite part.  I love them.  But I have to remember that here at ECHO animals are food, not friends.

Look!  It's a Sabu!  Yes Veggie Tale friends, this is a real sabu.  

 Ok...so I may have made friends with the food.  This goat is housed in a building that stands about 1 foot above the ground.  The manure falls underneath and then is used in the gardens.  The same is true with the bunnies.  Also with the ducks and chickens that are not out roaming in certain gardens eating insects that could harm the plants.

 I love this and plan on implementing it in our backyard this summer.  This is a "tippy tap".  Appropriate technology!  The Wisk container has a small hole in the lid, and is filled with water.  There is a small bottle of soap also hanging from it.  (Some tippy taps have bar soap hanging)  Attached to the neck of the bottle is a string with a stick on the bottom.  You step on the stick to get the water to come out.  It is a hand-washing station!  Proper hand washing is so important to keep disease down.  I will have to "borrow" a detergent bottle as we use Charlie's Soap that doesn't come in bottles.

These are tiny Moringa trees.  We love Moringa.  Rosebud eats Moringa yogurt and Moringa Oatmeal.  I drink Moringa tea for better breastmilk for her.  What is Moringa?  I had a post on it here.  

 A really cool thing about ECHO is that they simulate different growing conditions from around the world.  This is a rooftop garden.  Live in a shack have have zero yard?  Grow your veggies in a tire, old bucket, milk jug, old carpeting (seriously...no soil, just carpet and rocks!), or whatever garbage you have.  They have seeds that work for any condition!

 This area is "mountain".

 And a rice patty.  Not pictured are tons of other gardens.  But this post is long enough.

 There is also a gift shop that people can buy products.

 It has a great selection of books on gardening.  There is kid's book about the Moringa plant that I wanted to buy, but we were there after hours.  If you know someone who is living overseas ministering to impoverished people, or you yourself are planning on doing long/short term missions, I urge you to check out ECHO.

 Because as beautiful and peaceful as the gardens and property of ECHO are, they are there to educate people on how to fight world hunger.  And they are mission minded.  You can also support them financially and through prayer.  Search them on Facebook and you can "Like" them and find out more also!