About Us

Genesis Garden is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Macomb, Illinois, USA. Genesis Garden was founded out of a grassroots organization dedicated to addressing and eliminating the effects of poverty through a proactive, preventative, and compassionate approach. Our inception was inspired by the rapid eviction of Shade Tree Mobile Park residents in 2010. This event exposed the lack of emergency and rapid re-housing in Macomb and McDonough County for families who suddenly find themselves without a place to live.

Summer Meals for Kids began in 2016. Beginning as a fixed-site meal to meet USDA mandate, Summer Meals went on the road during the COVID-19 pandemic, taking advantage of the waivers of some USDA rules, to deliver breakfast and lunch for each day of the week. In summer 2021, during the pandemic, summer meal services returned to operations under the auspices of the school district and Aramark.

The grassroots Soup & More community meal launched in 2010 joined Genesis Garden in 2018. The COVID-19 pandemic forced this food-sharing initiative into a hiatus. Post-pandemic we’re focusing on relationship-building while sharing meals together through the Family Dinner Project.

In 2019, the board of directors engaged in a strategic planning process and refined Genesis Garden’s mission, vision, and core values. The resultant guiding elements were formally adopted in September 2019.

Vision Mission Values Word Art

Our Mission: Sharing food.
Providing shelter.
Empowering community.

Our Vision: A resilient and hopeful community.

Our Core Values:
Empowerment,
Community, Compassion, Strengths-focused,
Asset-based

In 2021, Genesis Garden’s directors participated in a series of trainings to focus efforts more on transformational change and development using a lens of asset-based and holistic community development.

Staff
Jeanetta Thorpe, Genesis Housing Director
Mariam Antoine, AmeriCorps VISTA Volunteer through Housing Action Illinois
Ace Whitman, Consulting
Becky Danner, Housing Coordinator
Hayley Cooper, Case Manager
Heather Bemount, Employment Specialist
Josie, 2024 Intern
Shawntae Howard, Housing Counselor-in-training
pending, Community Facilitator

Directors
Melissa Calhoun, President
David Monninger, Vice President
Mark Merrill, Treasurer

Founding President: Brooks Olds


Kathy Stoner-Lasala
Marie Blome
Bill Thompson

2020-21 Interns, Peace Corps Fellows, and AmeriCorps VISTA Volunteers
Miranda Lambert (2020-21), Sydney Dewees (2020-21), Alexander Benishek (2021), Cortnie Schierman, (2020-21), Zac Green (2021),
Cindy Guzman, Intern, WIU Social Work Department (Spring 2021)

Summer 2020 Volunteers/Staff
AmeriCorps Summer VISTA: Adrienne Graham, Grace Merrett, Lily Mansfield, Ethan La Prad, Ethan Fogg, Gibby Blankenship, Devon Simpson, Jessica Moncrieff, Iliyana Olds, Marco Narvaez, Desi Blanken
Peace Corps Fellows/AmeriCorps: Camden Arnold, Brianne Nichols, Meghan Elgee, Miranda Lambert, Gaothajying Her, Cortnie Schierman, Katie Colon
Summer Meals Assistants: Annie Powell, Noah La Prad, Aiden Necak