written by James Sawyer
Mount Eagle Retreat Center has received an $8,500 EarthKeepers grant from UMCOR’s Global Ministries, marking a significant step forward in its long-standing commitment to creation care, environmental justice, and faithful stewardship. The grant will support a composting and awareness initiative at Mount Eagle and in partnership with First United Methodist Church in Clinton, Arkansas, strengthening connections between retreat ministry, local congregations, and the surrounding community.
The EarthKeepers program is a Global Ministries initiative that equips United Methodists in the United States to develop and lead environmental sustainability projects in their communities. Through training in eco-theology, antiracism, community organizing, and project planning, EarthKeepers participants are empowered to turn faith into action through tangible projects such as community gardens, food security efforts, energy initiatives, reforestation, and waste reduction. Mount Eagle’s composting project embodies this vision by integrating practical environmental solutions with spiritual formation and community engagement.
A Vision Years in the Making
According to Daniel Hiatt, Executive Director of Mount Eagle Retreat Center, this project has been developing for several years and builds on a strong legacy of creation care at the retreat center. From its earliest days, Mount Eagle has emphasized stewardship of the land as an integral part of its ministry. Lu Harding, Mount Eagle’s first director, established a deep-rooted commitment to creation care that continues to shape the center’s mission today.
“Our mission is to provide Christian hospitality and opportunities for holy listening,” Hiatt explained. “Connecting with our environment is a major component of that ministry. Hearing God in creation is vital to bridging the growing disconnect between ourselves and the world we are a part of.”
Over the years, Mount Eagle has maintained a composting program for guests, but leaders recognized the need to expand both capacity and impact. That expansion became possible through a series of partnerships. A major grant from the Methodist Foundation for Arkansas enabled the purchase of an industrial composting machine earlier this year. Additional support came from the United Women in Faith of Clinton First United Methodist Church, whose thrift store ministry has distributed more than a million dollars in community grants. Their contribution helped fund the construction of a compost shed, which was built with the help of NOMADS volunteers.
The EarthKeepers grant now provides the final boost needed to move the project from vision to full implementation.
Expanding Capacity and Accessibility
Mount Eagle’s new industrial composting machine represents a significant leap forward in what the ministry can accomplish. Unlike traditional composting systems, the machine can process materials that are often excluded, including meat, dairy, and certain compostable plates, cups, and utensils. Once fully operational, it will be able to process up to 10 tons of food waste per year, or approximately 55 pounds every 24 hours.
“This makes composting much more accessible,” Hiatt said. “Guests who are unfamiliar with composting don’t have to worry about sorting or making mistakes. Almost any food waste can go into the collection stream.”
The EarthKeepers grant funds will be used to make targeted upgrades to the compost shed, improving efficiency and increasing the volume the system can handle. The grant will also support the purchase of collection bins, labels, signage, and transportation needs, all of which are essential for expanding compost collection beyond Mount Eagle’s gates.
Partnering with Clinton First United Methodist Church
A key component of the project is Mount Eagle’s partnership with First United Methodist Church in Clinton. Over the coming year, the two ministries will work together to pilot compost collection within the life of a local congregation.
Initial efforts will focus on collecting compostable materials from Sunday gatherings, coffee hours, and fellowship events. Over time, the program will expand to include potlucks, program meals, and eventually a home bucket collection system that allows congregants to swap full buckets for clean ones at the church. By spring, leaders hope to evaluate capacity and potentially open a community drop-off option, offering a new point of connection between the church and its neighbors.
For Clinton FUMC, the partnership aligns naturally with ongoing sustainability efforts. Under the leadership of Rev. Brad Moore, the congregation has taken concrete steps toward becoming a more environmentally responsible church. These include reducing the use of Styrofoam and non-compostable materials, adding recycling bins throughout church buildings, and upgrading lighting to energy-efficient LED fixtures.
The church has also launched a community garden maintained by students from the Clinton High School Alternative Education program. Earlier this year, Clinton FUMC hosted two Keep Arkansas Beautiful community clean-up events, collecting more than 600 pounds of trash and 20 pounds of recyclable materials.
“We are excited about partnering with Mount Eagle on this composting project,” Moore shared. “This initiative offers a meaningful opportunity for our church to build relationships with our neighbors as we work together to reduce waste and care for creation.”
Composting as Ministry and Outreach
While the technical aspects of composting are important, leaders emphasize that the heart of the project is ministry. The initiative is designed to serve as a flexible outreach tool that congregations can adapt to their existing passions and programs.
Collection bins and stations will include educational materials that invite participants into deeper conversations about creation justice, food systems, and faithful stewardship. Churches with community gardens can use compost to enrich the soil. Congregations already engaged in fair trade or hunger ministries can connect composting to broader discussions about sustainability and equity.
“Composting is a way to reconnect with our food and waste systems and, ultimately, with creation itself,” Hiatt said. “That reconnection helps restore relationships—with God, with one another, and with the world around us.”
Looking Ahead
In the short term, the project will divert significant amounts of food waste from landfills, reduce methane emissions, and produce nutrient-rich compost. In the long term, Mount Eagle hopes the initiative will serve as a model for other congregations interested in creation care as a form of discipleship and community engagement.
By pairing practical action with theological reflection and partnership, the EarthKeepers-funded composting project reflects a growing movement within the church to live out faith in ways that heal both people and planet. For Mount Eagle Retreat Center and Clinton First United Methodist Church, composting is more than waste management—it is a tangible expression of listening for God’s voice in creation and responding with faithful action.