A Sustainable Parish to the Glory of God

A Sustainable Campus to the Glory of God

In the Spring of 2021, the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America featured our parish for our unique, eco-friendly campus design and the sustainability of our church grounds.

We believe that caring for the environment is a core part of Christian stewardship. Our campus is actively cultivated to produce natural gifts used both in our worship and by our community:

• Sacramental Vines: We cultivate imported Mavro and Xynisteri grapevines from Cyprus, grown specifically to produce our own sacramental wine.

• The Parish Orchard: Our grounds feature approximately 80 fruit trees—including figs, peaches, nectarines, apricots, apples, pomegranates, cherries, persimmons, and various citrus trees—for our parishioners to enjoy.

• Palm Trees: We harvest our own palm branches directly from our campus for the celebration of Palm Sunday.

• Olive Groves: Our olive trees are grown and harvested to provide table olives for our community.

• Beehives: We maintain active hives on-site for local honey production.

Faith in Action

As we work the land, we look to the saints for inspiration and intercession. We entrust our bees to the protection of St. Modomnoc, our fruit trees to the care of St. Tryphon, and our future community gardens to the care of the Theotokos.

Maximizing our grounds is just the first step in a larger vision to make Saint Anna a model of environmental sustainability. We are continuously looking toward the future—from our recent transition to energy-efficient LED exterior lighting to our plans for solar panel installations—as we strive to be better stewards of God's creation.