Crouching down in their camo uniforms, men pulled weeds at a garden in South Dallas. Above, cars on Interstate 45 whizzed by as the group pruned a large, aromatic, overgrown rosemary bush.
“What’s the lesson in that?” asked David Roberson, both a pastor and chef for the Men of Nehemiah, a Christian addiction recovery program that uses discipleship, counseling and a military structure to help the men rebuild their lives.
The program serves men as they recover from addiction, working with them to reunite with loved ones, find jobs and build their faith.
The garden — along with the learning and nutrition that come with it — is a therapeutic measure, Roberson said, serving as a metaphor for many of the challenges and triumphs of dealing with substance abuse and other parts of life.
The men watered and weeded the crops, which included tomatoes, peppers, radishes, cauliflower and leafy greens. The rosemary will likely be chopped up for different herb blends, and it can be put in water for its health benefits, Roberson said. A large bag of it had already been moved to the kitchen.
Every Thursday, the men till the ground, plant seeds and see the new growth. Roberson said his lesson was the weeds didn’t stop the rosemary, which was strong. But the plant couldn’t weed itself, and much like the man who was tending to it, the crop would need someone to help “pull some of the stuff up that’s not necessary,” Roberson said.
“They do all that, and then they see it come back to life,” Roberson said. “It’s pretty much reminiscent of where they are. They’re getting a fresh start.”
On Thanksgiving, donors will cook for the men, Roberson said. There will be plenty of food, and if there’s too much, they’ll take it to people who could use it.
At Men of Nehemiah, Roberson said, the program will be working to cook and eat everything from the garden.
A garden as a metaphor
Melinda Russ, the nonprofit’s executive director, said the men go through a process of “pruning.” They chose to go to the program and “plant the seeds as a way to change their lives, a way to grow out of the past that they’ve been burdened with.”
The garden, near Al Lipscomb Way and South Harwood Street, is an important part of the journey for men working to recover, organization leaders said.
Men of Nehemiah helps people from all different walks of life, said David Alvey, a spokesperson for the program. Many have faced homelessness or incarceration. Others have had high-paying jobs and homes in the suburbs. They are all working to put their lives back together, he said.
With the program’s military influence, the men wear uniforms, march and go through the first 90 days as a sort of boot camp, Alvey said. There is a hierarchy, with drills and calisthenics to provide discipline.
The program has 57 positions in its main program and is at capacity, Russ said Thursday. The after-care program, a sober living community, can house another 40.
According to the organization, 61% of men who graduated from the program before 2020 stayed sober for at least two years. Of 39 men who graduated in 2022, all had a job and a savings account when they left the program. That year, 117 participated, averaging a stay of nearly seven months.
Work on the garden started before the COVID-19 pandemic, with boxes built and planted for the crops, Russ said. It wasn’t until restrictions were lifted, that it could move forward.
The garden coordinator, Terry McCullough, said she began working to build up the garden about two years ago. She loved working with flowers but hadn’t gardened vegetables. When Russ, her friend, called and told her about the organization’s nine raised beds, she got to work.
“I just jumped in there and started learning with the guys and learning all about vegetables and growing food,” she said.
The land was “barren” when the garden was started, she said. There weren’t birds or bugs to pollinate the garden. They first had to plant flowers and install bird feeders for the “initial boost of life” at the site surrounded by traffic and construction, McCullough said.
Two years later, the garden also has four in-ground garden rows, along with four peach trees, two plum trees and a lemon tree for an orchard.
Some crops take longer than others, she said. Some days are productive, but on others people get tired, especially when it’s hot, McCullough said, adding volunteers are welcome on Thursday mornings.
“All good things take a little bit of time, at least a little bit and sometimes a lot,” McCullough said.
She sometimes still gets eye rolls at the number of times she says, “This is the moment. This is where the garden is a metaphor for life.”
Like rebuilding their lives, the garden takes preparation and care. Sometimes, McCullough said, they can do everything possible to garden correctly and get a massive bounty.
Other times, it just doesn’t work out.
“It’s a cycle,” McCullough said. “It’s not always a huge success but there are also great successes and beauty in all of it.”
‘I’ve seen them grow’
Ricky Zubia pointed to a leafy row of plants at the garden Thursday. They’re strawberries, he said.
“I’ve seen them grow,” Zubia said. “They give me energy to want to keep on going, to see it from nothing to something.”
He remembered planting the strawberries his first week at the program, about two months ago.
Since being in the program, Zubia said that he discovered the “root cause” for his substance abuse and found his faith. He’s now excited to connect more with his family, who “didn’t want nothing to do with me because of my addiction.” Now, he said they are talking.
Davis Garner, who has also been with the program for a few months, said he felt a positive, calming impact from connecting with nature in the garden and “seeing how life comes and goes.” He said he’s been trying to “reroute” and start a new life.
Garner said he joined after his family made an emotional push for him to seek help for addiction issues. He found himself, a father of four, in a “dark place.” While he had been skeptical in the past of programs, Garner said that for 20 years, his life was “upside down.” Now, he said, he’s quickly seeing changes.
“It’s like my patience has come in again,” Garner said. “Having patience and clarity about life again and appreciation for life, it’s just a beautiful thing.”
As the holidays approach, Roberson said it will be important for those in the program to remain focused on recovering.
While some might be tempted to leave the program, the pastor said it’s important for them to remember the “decision that they’re making right now” will allow them to “be who you need to be for the rest of your life with your family.”