A couple in Anadarko, Oklahoma, has seen their story become viral on the internet after they began using their two-acre garden to feed less fortunate members of their community. Mike and Lana Cross are a married couple who, like so many others, found themselves with a ton of spare time on their hands after retiring from their careers.
So, with all that free time, the pair began sowing and harvesting their backyard garden for up to six hours a day. The laborious job saw them work through rain and intense sun to see their little plot of land grow into a bountiful expanse of food.
Unlike many farmers, however, the Cross’ had no interest in using that garden to make money. They instead began giving much of the food away to the people in their community who could not comfortably afford such cleanly sourced food. It takes a couple with special hearts to spend all of that blood sweat and tears working the field only to give the product away for free.
Local news station KFOR reported on the couple and their extreme generosity. In the article, swathes of neighbors came forward to offer their own kind words about the couple and praise them for making the town of Anadarko a better place.
One neighbor spoke about the kindness that Lana had shown her, saying, “Even while I was gone recently, Lana texted me and said, ‘Do you want your corn on the cob or cut off?’ You know, how many people would do that for you? And I got home and I had corn in the freezer.”
While many in the community try to give thanks and praise to the Cross couple, Mike is very quick to divert the attention away from himself. “God growed it, I didn’t,” he said, referring to his garden. With every single thing that you learn about Mike and Lana Cross, their selflessness and grace become more apparent. Not only are they receiving no financial benefit from their hours in the garden, they also refuse to become the center of attention when the spotlight is cast in their direction.
The neighborhood, however, was not ready to allow the Cross’ to continue to do their work without thanks. So, in conjunction with a local bank and news network, they nominated the couple for a $400 award to pay for the purchase of more farming supplies.
“Don’t cry yet or I’ll cry too. We just wanted to let other people know what good people you guys are,” one neighbor said. “And so, First Fidelity Bank and Channel 4 want to give you $400 to buy some more corn seed – or however you plant corn, I don’t know. And we love you and we just appreciate you.”
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