CREATING BRIGHT EYED HIGH SCHOOLERS
Yesterday I spent the day with the organizers of what promises to be the largest nature resort east of the Mississippi. The 550 acre property is currently just forest, but things will happen soon as it takes shape. It's located west of Strasburg, Virginia out Route 55.
The organizers wanted me to go and vet nearby farmers to see who and where collaborations could be made both for food provenance and for real agrarian experiential connections for resort patrons. The idea is that part of the wellness journey is seeing and hopefully even participating a bit in real land healing food production.
The highlight of the day was visiting Wardensville Farm Market, just across the border in Wardensville, West Virginia, population 250. Like most extremely rural enclaves, the area suffers from vision. Young people view leaving the area as the only way to make a living. The community feels beaten down by lack of opportunity.
But along came Paul and a partner and some financial backers and put together a plan for economic development and youth inspiration. Paul read The Market Gardener by J.M. Fortier (who will be here at Polyface for the Mother Earth News fair July 17-18) and, although Paul had never grown anything, caught the vision to leverage the abundant natural resources with a farm.
But not just any farm. It's a non-profit dedicated to providing guidance and encouragement to local youth. Working closely with the local high school, the fledgling outfit committed to creating 10 jobs. That was it. Just create 10 jobs. Can we do that?
In just 7 short years, they've created 78 jobs in a town of 250 people and stacked additional enterprises, including a non-profit social enterprise called Farms Work Wonders (FWW). With classroom and tutorial help, the farm employs high schoolers as the bulk of its work force (paying well above going wages in the area) and converting these young people from down-ward focused can't do its to bright eyed bushy tailed entrepreneurial eager beavers that look you in the eye and shake your hand firmly.
By the time we got done touring the grounds and meeting the young people, I was in tears as were both of the nature resort organizers. Here's the mission statement: "to expand opportunities for local youth so they can reach their full potential." When most of society fawns over STEM cohorts and computers, these folks have found magic in meaningful agrarianism.
Participating in the magic of seed, soil, and sun, the transformation on these young people is profound beyond imagination. The whole effort now includes 3.5 acres of intensive organic vegetable production, a full-on artisanal bakery and a restaurant/diner due to open in a few months. The next big project is a commercial kitchen to leverage the production into a branded product line and venture outside the immediate area.
The young people who work there choose a kind of tithing to support charities in the area in turn, so they're taught to give back like they've received. The farm gave out $43,000 in scholarships last year and is now heading toward a $2 million a year gross income enterprise. The restaurant will add a lot to that.
The restorative capacity of meaningful sweat can hardly be overestimated. Could I find some things I'd do differently? Of course. But the overall spirit of the place and the clear vision of the staff and young workers was profound beyond words. I left humbled and hopeful about what a simple vision in a simple place using simple tools and simple resources could accomplish. As the founder Paul commented: "kids who can't look up come in here and within a few months they're running the place."
That's exciting, don't you think?