CONCORD, CA (May 27, 2025) — Matt Davis doesn’t want to rock the world, just change it a little piece at a time. Or to be more specific, one tomato at a time.

The Concord retiree is the brains behind the Free Tomato Project (FTP), a nonprofit organization that is helping community gardens sprout around the city. The initial garden was at the Salvation Army on Clayton Road, and the second one is on the grounds of Crossroads Church at the corner of Kirker Pass Road and Concord Boulevard.

FTP allows anyone, regardless of economic background, to harvest tomatoes and other fresh vegetables when they are in season, and tomato season is coming up June 1, Davis says.

Davis acknowledges that the “first two chapters” of his life were about making money. Now, it’s about how to give back.

“We need to help our neighbors now more than ever. I see senior citizens and single moms struggling to put healthy food on the table. This is my little way to offer up something for people who need it.”

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Strong at heart

Davis is not doing this alone. Family, friends and other volunteers have seen the fruits, er, vegetables of his labor and jumped in to help rototill, fertilize, plant – anything that is needed. But looking at Davis, you would think he could do this on his own.

Despite the fact that Davis calls himself “a decrepit old man,” his appearance belies the description. His face is sun-kissed from his time planting, and his strong body moves up and down the aisles of plants gracefully, bending, stooping and generally fixing anything his plants need.

The concept for FTP came to him post-pandemic. “I’m an idea guy,” he says. “I’ve worked in marketing and advertising my whole life and amassed and lost several fortunes. But my greatest fear in life is waking up one morning and not having a ­creative idea.”

Life changes – including double bypass surgery – brought him from Danville to his current home in a 55-plus community near Newell Park. At his cardiologist’s suggestion, he took to walking daily, “just to get my steps in.”

It was on one of those walks that he passed the Salvation Army church and saw some unused space that would be perfect for a garden. The Salvation Army was all too happy to let FTP use the space, and through donations from the likes of the Contra Costa Soil Company, Grocery Outlet and Ace Hardware, the first FTP was born, all 50 plants.

It yielded an astonishing 10,000 tomatoes, and those that weren’t picked were donated back to the Salvation Army or the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano Counties.

‘We’ll plant more’

The endeavor was so successful that the Salvation Army gave Davis more space for the garden this year, where he is in the process of putting in 400 vegetable plants – and not just tomatoes. There are zucchini, peppers and other fresh vegetables available to anyone who wants them.

“I get asked, ‘What if someone takes too much?’ I just say, ‘We’ll plant more.’ ”

With his clever mind working, Davis went to Pastor Alex Hartz at Crossroads, asking him if he wanted the Methodists at the Salvation Army to get all the attention. Hartz happily and graciously donated a chunk of land on the very visible corner for the second large garden.

Calling in an expert

Since Crossroads hosts three different congregations at the church, including a Latino group, Davis found no shortage of volunteers to help with the project.

“I thought planting was easy,” Davis says. “Just stick it in the ground. But no, you need to rototill the soil, add fertilizer, stake the tomatoes … no wonder I always had a black thumb.”

He credits the vegetable specialists at Sloat Garden Center for helping further his horticulture education. “There’s a tomato guru there who knows everything!”

He is also getting monetary donations from local organizations. The Clayton Business and Community Association recently donated $1,000 to the Kirker Pass site.

Davis would like to open more FTP sites in Concord, as he’s eying unused land at the Presbyterian Church down the road from Crossroads and at the Lutheran Church across the street from Clayton Valley Charter High School.

“My vision is to drive around the area and say, ‘Oh, there’s another sign for the Free Tomato Project.’ ”

The idea man says that coming up with plans is cheap, but what’s really rewarding is to execute them. “Put your head down and go to work. You’ll get it done,” Davis says.

For more information on the Free Tomato Project or to donate time and/or money, visit www.freetomatoproject.com or email freetomatoproject@gmail.com. Reach Davis by phone at 925-594-2052.