Shawn Hayden entered GAAMHA’s Pathway House in 2009 with little hope and a life unraveling from addiction. Over time, the program’s structure and support helped him rebuild his life, repair his family relationships, and discover a professional path in service to others. That journey led to an unexpected turning point: the creation of GAAMHA’s care farming program, where individuals with substance use disorder and/or mental health challenges care for rescued animals and, in the process, experience connection, healing, and trust. 

Now President and CEO of GAAMHA, Shawn speaks candidly about his past struggles with addiction and how they continue to shape his perspective on recovery, purpose, and healing. He discusses the powerful, often transformative stories that emerge from the farm. And he reflects on the promising future of care farming and its potential to transform lives, communities, and the way society approaches support and recovery.

Read the Full Article here.

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The gravel road winds past whispering pines and sunlit fields, giving way to a wooden sign: Fox Moon Farm. Beyond it lies 60 acres of wild serenity deep within King and Queen County, with meadows stitched with clover, a glassy lake, and the low murmur of horses shifting in the pasture.

It is a place where time seems to stretch and soften, where nature and compassion braid together like strands of a bridle, and where a truly unique and enriching project was formed. For the people who come here, including children with autism, adults living with dementia, and parents weary from worry, this is more than a farm. It is a sanctuary.

The Fox Moon Farm Project began as a dream to “be of service.” Co-founded by Cindy Freishtat and Maria Flint, the nonprofit was born from a search for something real and rooted. It was a calling that would bring immeasurable meaning to their lives and to the lives of others.

Maria always dreamed of a farm for healing where people could gather to build community and connection. Cindy knew firsthand the healing powers of horses, having grown up with them, and was later inspired by her father, who had dementia, to create a nonprofit to help others in need.

The farm’s motto is simple: We Grow People.

“Growing people” means many things, but one of the most important traits the Fox Moon Farm Project cultivates is hope. For some, hope means their child developing the skills to live independently one day. For another, it is overcoming depression. For someone else, it is the hope of friendship and a chance to go to prom. The magic created here is not limited by age, gender, or background. It is palpable, and every visitor can feel and benefit from it.

In addition to the children who come to the farm daily for sessions, whether through Social Services programs or self-pay, the farm welcomes everyone. Twice a month, a gathering of amazing people with intellectual and developmental disabilities from Transitions Day Support Services comes to spend time with horses and other animals.

Participants pet and groom the horses, hold baby goats, garden, and help with other barn chores. Each activity is designed to engage the mind and calm the nervous system.

“They connect on a spiritual level, on an emotional level, on a physical level,” explained Fox Moon Farm equine specialist Kiele Marston. “You can just see the smiles come out. You can see them getting out of their van with anxiety and transforming into just happiness. It is amazing to experience.”

Healing at Fox Moon Farm takes many forms. Sometimes it is the quiet pace of a horse’s huff, and sometimes it is the spark that happens when connection replaces fear.

When 17-year-old Matt first arrived, he was nonverbal. His eyes darted between the sky and the ground, never meeting anyone else. Freishtat, who runs the farm’s Healing with Horses program, said that while initially nervous, he soon became a beloved visitor.

“He is just very special to me,” she said. “Maybe it is because he is one of my first, I do not know, but I have been working with him for quite some time.” The connection came not through words but through rhythm.

“You have to find what attracts and engages them, and I quickly learned that for Matt it was music,” she said. “I started singing, and I started clapping and we started drumming.”

Music became their bridge, and in the months that followed, something miraculous happened. Matt began to practice verbal skills. He started following directions, driving the tractor and laughing out loud.

“One of the most powerful things that has happened with Matt is that he is starting to learn language,” Freishtat said. “He is finding his way into the world.”

At Fox Moon Farm, children with special needs learn through movement and touch. From brushing the coats of horses to gathering eggs or tending to the Community Garden that helps feed local families, every task builds confidence and helps create a calm space.

“A lot of these kids need to be outside. They need to be in a farm environment, and they need to be with animals,” Freishtat explained. “We were out in a big field, and I put Matt’s hands on the wheel, and I was like, ‘Let’s go.’”

The tractor rolled forward, the wind caught their laughter, and for a moment, everything was perfect.  Driving the tractor has been a massive self-confidence boost for Matt, and it means there is real hope that he can one day drive a car all by himself.

“To be a parent of a child with special needs is so hard on so many levels,” Freishtat said. “And to see your child doing things that you never thought they might be able to do, whether saying words, driving a tractor, or opening gates and following directions… you know what we do? We give them hope.”

Hope, it turns out, is Fox Moon Farm’s truest crop.

The Healing with Horses program is part of a larger picture, one that continues to evolve. In addition, the farm hosts private family and friends Gathering Spaces. Whether you are celebrating a special occasion, having a family reunion or simply wanting to catch your breath, the farm offers the perfect backdrop for meaningful connections and inspiration. Dive into their beautiful lake for a swim or take a boat ride while soaking in the stunning views. All of the spaces are rentable by the day. Even the farm’s newest addition, Soul Moon Cove, builds that vision. Nestled by a six-acre lake beneath cathedral-high oaks, it serves as a retreat space for yoga, art, and empowerment workshops.

“It is a place to rest and rediscover yourself,” Flint said. “People come here to heal, to learn, to breathe.”

Hope also comes in the form of their Community Garden, a program designed to support families experiencing food insecurity in King and Queen County, as well as surrounding counties. Tended to by loving hands, the farm harvests and delivers thousands of pounds of organic produce to families in need each year, and there is more on the horizon. 

Behind the scenes, another dream is taking shape: the Forest Trail Project. The team has been carefully crafting a network of winding paths through the surrounding woods, serving as a living classroom where participants can walk, ride, and explore. The trail will serve as a haven for horseback rides and quiet reflection while also becoming a new setting for hands-on learning. Along these shaded paths, children and adults alike will practice decision-making, confidence building, problem-solving, and creativity, guided by the gentle harmony of nature.

Leading the charge is the farm’s newest team member, Jared Rigney, whose background in outdoor education and easy humor have already made him a favorite among the kids.

“He has got them laughing and working hard,” Freishtat said, smiling, adding that the crew members are not just building a trail; they are building pride.

At Fox Moon, the belief that nature is the greatest teacher runs deep. On any given day, the farm hums with quiet purpose. Horses nicker softly as volunteers muck. Children’s laughter carries on the breeze. Down by the lake, dragonflies skim the surface while attendees practice meditation on the dock. It is not unusual to see a parent sitting nearby with tears in their eyes, not from sadness, but from the simple joy of watching their child open up and bloom in the natural world.

Fox Moon Farm is not a grand facility with sprawling stables or high-priced treatments. It is something much rarer: a place where the boundaries between people and nature blur and where healing is found not in medicine but in moments of connection.

“Every person who comes here leaves a little piece of themselves behind and takes something of Fox Moon with them,” Freishtat said, reflecting on what the farm has become. In the evenings at Fox Moon Farm, as the wind stirs the tall grass and the farm settles in this quiet corner of Virginia, far from the noise of the world, hearts found their home. 

For more information on Fox Moon Farm, visit them on Facebook at facebook.com/foxmoonfarmproject or online at foxmoonfarm.org.

If you work with children or adolescents experiencing trauma, depression, behavioral challenges, special needs, or situations where traditional talk therapy has not reached them, consider the power of Equine Assisted Learning. At Fox Moon Farm, horses help students learn emotional awareness, self-regulation, anger management, boundary setting, and so much more – one steady heartbeat at a time.

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By Deborah Becker

Farming wasn’t on Shawn Hayden’s mind when he began looking at property near Gardner, a small city in central Massachusetts. His plan was to convert a farmhouse into housing for men in recovery from drug addiction and mental health issues.

Hayden, who runs the Gardner Athol Area Mental Health Association, envisioned a place where residents would live while receiving services from his organization.

As he and his staff finalized their first property deal, the seller made an unexpected request.

“It was kind of on his way out, he’s like, ‘Hey, I have two goats and a pony here,’ ” Hayden recalled. ” ‘Can they just stay?’ And we said, ‘I guess so.’ ”

From that unlikely beginning, was born a program that’s part animal sanctuary, part therapy center. The number of animals on the Gardner property has grown to 75 — with chickens, pigs, horses and critically endangered Newfoundland ponies joining the farm’s original residents.

The 16 men who live at what’s now known as the Carl E. Dahl House care for the animals and do daily chores. They typically stay for several months. Each person is assigned one particular animal to watch over as a central element of their therapy.

Since the farm began accepting residents in 2021, it has served about 200 men, funded through a combination of state and private grants, and donations. Hayden said many of the men are doing well and are now living on their own.

The program could become part of a growing trend in addiction treatment under U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has touted creating “healing farms” across the country for people struggling with substance use.

While the residents in Hayden’s center receive weekly counseling and psychiatric care, he believes it’s their work with animals that brings the most important lessons. Hayden said concepts like resilience and empathy are part of many treatment programs, but people appear to understand them more clearly once animals are involved.

“Sometimes it’s hard to get people motivated,” Hayden said. “But if I put a baby goat in your hands, everyone wants to help that baby goat, right? So it’s a little bit of a cheat code for some of these kind of lessons that we’ve been trying to teach people forever.”

Many animals at the farm are old or sick and need a lot of care, he explained, leading to lessons about accountability and showing up daily. Sometimes they don’t survive, prompting conversations about grief and letting go.

The goats are a favorite of 48-year-old Walter Cobb from Dorchester. He recently relapsed after six years of being drug-free. Cobb said he enjoys the routine of his daily chores. He’d never been on a farm before he arrived two months ago. Now, he said, he visits one goat a couple of times a day.

“I come out here at 5 in the morning,” Cobb said, as he swept one of the barns. “It’s gotten to the point where he jumps up and lets me hug him. We’ve got a good bond.”

Sometimes it's hard to get people motivated. But if I put a baby goat in your hands, everyone wants to help that baby goat, right?

-Shawn Hayden

The farm is an example of what’s known as a “therapeutic community,” a broad category of residential treatment that’s been around for decades. The programs are typically at least several months long, led by people who are also in recovery and include work or vocational training as part of the therapy.

While Hayden’s program requires daily chores and animal care, he said it’s different from some other therapeutic communities because of its focus on medical care and professional mental health treatment. The men’s work with the animals, he said, is built into a daily routine that blends old-fashioned farming with current therapeutic techniques led by staff counselors and psychiatrists.

“There is nothing we do on this farm that’s novel,” Hayden said. “We didn’t invent anything. We looked at something that’s worked for centuries, and we modernized some components of it.”

Also taking a fresh look at this idea is U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has personal and family experience with drug and alcohol addiction. As a model, Kennedy points to a program in Italy, called San Patrignano.

San Patrignano is an unusually large and sophisticated therapeutic community that currently serves more than 800 people. The residents pledge to live there for at least two years and work in farming, culinary arts, textiles and other jobs. The program is free, but the patients’ work is unpaid, which critics argue leaves people vulnerable to exploitation.

San Patringano’s leaders, and some current and former residents, say work is crucial to treatment, and the proceeds support the community.

In 2023, Kennedy told the podcast host Dr. Drew Pinsky that creating a network of facilities like San Patrignano in the U.S. would be his “Peace Corps,” an initiative founded by his uncle, the late President John F. Kennedy, in the 1960s.

“They teach skills, they have bakeries and furniture factories, and they are basically self-sufficient. It is so successful over there,” said Kennedy, who promoted the rehab idea several times before he was confirmed as health and human services secretary.

In the past, some therapeutic communities have faced allegations of abusing and exploiting residents. In one high-profile example, a large therapeutic community based in California became a cult, and its rise and descent was profiled last year in an HBO documentary.

San Patrignano was itself the subject of scandals, but today its leaders say policies are in place to prevent abuses.

Addiction experts say while therapeutic communities should be part of the treatment landscape, they can vary widely in terms of quality and structure.

Kevin Sabet,  president and CEO of the Foundation for Drug Policy Solutions and a former drug policy advisor in the Clinton, Bush and Obama White Houses, said for therapeutic communities to succeed in the U.S., they must adhere to medical standards and strict oversight.

But Sabet also said the nation needs more — and better — drug treatment options. Although the U.S. spends billions annually on treatment, tens of thousands of people die of overdoses every year. That’s despite widening access to the overdose reversal drug naloxone, also known by the brand name Narcan.

Sabet said therapeutic communities might make a difference, especially for people with severe substance use disorders.

“It would be cheaper than what we’re doing now, frankly,” Sabet said, “which is often waiting until there are a lot of problems and dealing with it in the criminal system, or reviving somebody with Narcan 15 times.”

A strong feature of therapeutic communities, according to Sabet and other experts, is the length of treatment — well beyond the average 28 days spent in many U.S. rehabs. They say that’s not nearly enough time to treat people for addiction.

John Kelly, founder and director of the Recovery Research Institute at Massachusetts General Hospital, said addiction treatment should span at least five years and gradually wind down.

“We really are talking about the long game here,” Kelly said.

But he added that more research is needed to assess how therapeutic communities might address the opioid epidemic. He’s concerned that expanding them could backfire if the Trump administration forces people into treatment or if programs are not adequately funded.

San Patrignano’s medical director, Dr. Antonio Boschini, said it would take more than money to replicate the Italian program on this side of the Atlantic. He said other countries have adapted San Patrignano’s model to account for cultural differences. But he believes there is a significant difference in the U.S. that underlies its high rates of addiction.

“Pain is a disease in your country — not only physical pain, but psychological pain,” Boschini said. “If you don’t learn how to cope with pain, you are more vulnerable to drugs.”

Interest in therapeutic communities appears to be growing among U.S. providers, according to Hayden and other advocates. Hayden attended the first national “care farming” conference at the University of Massachusetts Amherst this year, and said another is planned for next year. He’s now collecting data on his approach, and has secured state grant funding and nonprofit awards to expand his youth outpatient program to bring more people to the farm.

The post With two goats and a pony, an addiction treatment ‘farm’ takes root in Mass. appeared first on Care Farming Network.

Last September, a group of kids came with their families to the Red Wiggler farm in Clarksburg, MD. Since June and until the end of the growing season in November, they have been receiving food shares from the farm through a partnership with a local food bank as part of a farm-to-school program. This trip was a special treat for everyone in their family, from toddlers to grandparents, to see where their food comes from. As soon as they arrived, a worker welcomed them into the field. They explored together and picked their own cilantro and flowers to take home. Then they sat for hours having lunch together, trying different veggies grown on the farm.

For many of these kids and their families, this visit will be the start of a long-term relationship with the farm. That is intentional, says Kara McCall, the farm’s executive director. “Some will come back to volunteer throughout the year as part of their student service learning hours. Families will come back for different events and celebrations. But they all build a connection to this place because they see us as part of their community,” she says.

Red Wiggler is a care farm, a model that uses regular farming activities—like planting, harvesting, and looking after animals—to help people feel healthier, happier, and more connected.

The farm was started in 1996 by Woody Woodroof, a photographer who had worked in group homes for folks with developmental disabilities. There, he saw a need to create spaces where these folks could connect, get better food, and find meaningful jobs. He started by creating a few community gardens at group homes and a composting service. As the need grew, he started the farm to provide full-time employment with fair wages for these folks. Today, the farm employs 17 folks with developmental disabilities.

“Most people have someone in their lives that they know that if they are given the right opportunity, they would thrive,” McCall says. “In the farm, they see and build relationships with folks with disabilities that are in leadership roles, doing meaningful work growing food, and being an active part of the community, not hidden away.”

Red Wiggler is intentional in creating spaces for neighbors to connect with each other in the farm. Aside from their farm-to-school program, they also run other programs that distribute food to local food pantries and invite them to come to the farm to visit. They also run a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program that is farm pick-up only. “Many CSAs have shifted to a delivery or pick up at a farmers market model, but we stuck to asking folks to come to the farm because when people come every week, connect, and build relationships with one another and the staff, it builds community.”

McCall says that they have a very high retention rate on their CSA, with some folks having stayed for 29 years since the founding of the farm because they develop deep relationships with neighbors they wouldn’t otherwise have. “Last week, one of the CSA assistants was sick. One of our CSA customers came up and asked, ‘Where is Kim?’ She wanted to let her know that at the thrift store they have a huge selection of stuffed animals because she knows she loves them. I don’t think that these two folks would’ve known each other otherwise, but now they have a friendship,” says McCall.

McCall says that even the name of the farm, Red Wiggler, speaks to their ultimate goal of fostering connection and trust. “The Red Wiggler is a type of worm that is the unsung hero of composting,” she says. “They take all these components that are unseen and transform them into nutrients. They make the airways that make the compost thrive. And that is what we are doing here. We are constantly asking ourselves, what do we need to shift to make sure everyone who walks in here feels like they belong?”

You can learn more about Red Wiggler on their website. You can also hear from one of their growers here.

The post This farm cultivates community, relationships, and trust appeared first on Care Farming Network.

After two months of designing and building, the ducks at Prospect Meadow Farm Berkshires are going to be living in comfort—and style!

Work crews from Prospect Meadow Farm, Community Based Day Support (CBDS), and the Skillbuilders MakerSpace+ programs each created several stylish duck houses, which will be on display at the Berkshire Farm location in Pittsfield.

The farm sees many mallard ducks and geese come and go throughout the year. The duck houses for the farm’s “Berkshire Duck Village” will help keep the flock comfortable and warm during the winter months, their preferred time of year to spend at the farm. The flock typically migrates during the spring with a smaller group staying behind during the summer.

Staff and farm hands alike were excited to start the project for the first time. Ashley Williams, Prospect Meadow Farm Berkshires program director, said she hopes to have more events in the future to continue bringing together the different farm programs.

The houses were judged on Friday, Sept. 19. Everyone went home with accolades and prizes, with each award being decided by a peer vote.

• Most Creative Design – CBDS Crew Best Use of Materials – Scott’s Crew Best Decoration – Skillbuilder’s Crew
• Most Likely to be featured on MTV Cribs – Chad’s Crew Cutest Design – Skillbuilder’s Crew
• Most Fun Design – Berkshire’s Crew Most Unique Style – Scott’s Crew
• Most Likely to make a duck smile – Mike’s Crew Overall Winners
• 3rd Place: The Berkshire Farm 2nd Place: Chad’s Carpentry Crew 1st Place: East CBDS Crew

“Each duck house reflects the creativity and teamwork that result when our staff and farm hands collaborate,” said Ashley Williams, Prospect Meadow Farm Berkshires program director. “This contest allowed participants to explore different approaches to brainstorming, engage in hands- on building, and gain experience even without prior skills. Being together at a site far from the other farms created a special sense of community, leaving a lasting impact on the farm hands.”

Thank you to each participant, we’re grateful and proud to have you take part! The ducks are going to love those houses!

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Care farming can bring diversification benefits for farmers who want to take on a social purpose and help bring extra income to rural economies.

Also known as social farming or green care, the term refers to the provision of on-farm activities for people with care needs, including neurodivergence such as autism and learning disabilities.

We profile some social farming initiatives, including signposting for farmers who want to find out more.

Pennyhooks Farm Trust

Pennyhooks is a 40ha organic beef and grassland farm, which provides learning opportunities for autistic adults, many of whom are non-speaking.

It offers a much-needed solution to the lack of provision for people with complex autism once they leave school.

The charity’s founder, Lydia Otter, who grew up on the Oxfordshire farm, began farm visits when she was teaching autistic children more than 30 years ago.

Today, Pennyhooks provides bespoke support for autistic adults to gain practical skills and a sense of achievement through work-based activities and to forge social connections through a shared purpose.

This is led by autism centre manager Emma Masefield, farm managers Dominic Hill and Richard Hurford, and an experienced care staff team.

Every student has one-to-one support as they learn farm skills such as rolling out straw bales and feeding the cows.

They are taught woodwork, and build planters and birdhouses that are sold in the farm shop, and take accredited courses developed with the Open Colleges Network.

They also carry out conservation work such as hedge planting, thistle digging and species recording.

The farm’s aim is to “level the mountains that autism can bring” to allow students to thrive.

Emma’s Master of Education dissertation about movement differences in autism found that the way activities are set up can have a profound impact.

She gives the example of a student who needs to spin and move in arcs being able to incorporate these movements into tasks.

Murray, who is non-verbal, wrote this: “Pennyhooks provides me with work in a worry-free environment. I am my true self when I am there. I am amazed in myself doing skills that have really useful meaning.”

With plans to build supported living flats for six people on the farm when they have raised enough money, Pennyhooks continues to grow.

Lydia says: “We have found that the farm is a resource that can make a difference to our clients’ lives and we want to share it.”

Pennyhooks has a course for farmers who want to provide a similar service, and Lydia would like to see financial incentives for farms.

“It’s the perfect circle: the farm helps look after the students and the students help look after the farm,” she says.

Social Farming Ireland

The network of social farms across Ireland has grown from seven to about 160 over the past 10 years after a successful pilot led to funding from the Irish Department of Agriculture.

Social Farming Ireland manages the national network by supporting and training farmers, and matching individuals who need support to farms.

Research and policy officer Mary Brennan says participants have a chance to engage in meaningful activities in a supportive but informal environment.

“The activities on the farm also give a sense of routine and structure as well as social connection,” she says.

Individualised support plans set goals for the placement.

Those could be skills sampling, progressing towards further training or work, developing social connections, increasing confidence, or improving physical or mental health and wellbeing.

It is not an employment placement and the work is appropriate for each person’s abilities.

Significantly, farmers are paid to provide the support placements – about €80/day (£69/day) a person.

Placements are typically with two or three people, one day a week for 12 weeks.

But the payment is rarely the motivating factor: “The sense of wellbeing stretches to the farmer. You are doing something for your community – something that is bigger than you,” says Mary.

Camphill Village Trust

Camphill Village Trust is harnessing the power of nature to give people with learning disabilities, autism and mental health challenges access to opportunity, purpose and belonging.

The trust was established more than 70 years ago and now encompasses 10 diverse communities across England, from a 260ha dairy farm to community gardens.

At each site, the charity blends sustainable farming practices with nature-based therapy and skills development. It’s a model where the soil nurtures produce and communities.

Camphill’s head of natural environment, Robin Asquith, says the farming activities can be especially suited to neurodivergent people: “Farming is real, with real problems, real tasks and an end purpose.

“Animals don’t judge – they treat everybody equally and can bring out a different side to us.

“I have seen people who are non-speaking start engaging and talking with animals; it can be a powerful thing.”

The trust provides a range of options, from day visits to residential supported living, working with healthcare providers, social workers, local authorities and private clients to deliver additional care where needed.

Robin says: “Each person is recognised for who they are, and everyone works together as equals, contributing to purposeful and fulfilling work.”

Robin has found that some autistic community members excel in the dairy, following strict procedures around cleanliness and data recording.

He also says the predictable rhythms of farming can be therapeutic.

Having completed his Nuffield Scholarship on social farming, he has seen how it strengthens communities.

“Before mechanisation, farms were the social hub of communities, but that’s less so now.

“The way we support people on farms brings that back, which is important as farming can be isolating,” he says.

The trust has an emphasis on farm-to-fork and sustainability.

The produce grown and made on site is used in the charity’s shops and cafés, and all community members are encouraged to access the fruit and vegetables that they grow together.

“We are reimagining social care and designing an answer to a sector that is challenged. Nature, the environment, food and animals have a massive role to play in supporting people a bit differently – and a bit more meaningfully,” says Robin.

The Inclusive Farm

Mike Duxbury is a man on a mission to break down the barriers that prevent people with disabilities from entering farming.

Despite losing his sight at the age of six, he has had a remarkable working life – both in farming and in industry – and he is proud to be the only blind man to build a livestock farm.

Six years ago, he and co-founder Ness Shillito created the Inclusive Farm in Buckinghamshire, which welcomes people with neurodivergence and physical disabilities to build confidence and develop work skills to see if farming is for them.

They might spend a day, a week or longer on the farm. The pair are now building another Inclusive Farm in Scotland and have plans to create residential opportunities.

The farms provide a safe environment with adaptations including making things more tactile, audible signage and phone technology.

For people with autism, Mike says matching jobs to special interests can be a strategy that avoids overwhelm.

His prime focus is on ability rather than disability. He found that people often focused on what he couldn’t do when he was growing up.

He says: “Let people be themselves – don’t judge them on what you think they can do but what they can do.”

The post Benefits of social farming and how farmers can get involved appeared first on Care Farming Network.

By Kerry Halladay

A growing program in New Mexico is helping connect adults with disabilities to farming.

On July 16, the USDA-funded AgrAbility program hosted the first of its National Training Workshop Encore Webinars for 2025. The event featured Sophie Trusty, program director at Mandy’s Farm. She spoke about the farm’s Adaptive Apprenticeship Program, which helps adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities learn farming skills and find agricultural job placement within the community in the Albuquerque area.

“AgrAbility is a USDA-sponsored program that assists farmers and ranchers and other agricultural workers with disabilities,” says Tess McKeel of Goodwill of the Finger Lake Team, an AgrAbility partner, who emceed the webinar. She explains that the national program partners with land grand universities that offer disability services organizations and that there are currently 21 state projects.

Mandy’s Farm is one of those state projects.

“Mandy’s Farm is the nonprofit partner in the New Mexico AgrAbility project,” Trusty says. She explained that the farm started in 2000 as a way to provide supportive residential living services initially to women with autism, but has since expanded to serve other people within the community.

“We had had this agricultural site for many years and started hearing more and more community need and interest and interest around agricultural programs and how that intersects for folks with disabilities towards employments,” Trusty continues. “That led us to being approached to be the nonprofit partner in the New Mexico AgrAbility project.”

About the Adaptive Apprenticeship Program

The Adaptive Apprenticeship Program started its first full-time apprenticeship cohort in February of 2023 with nine participants. It is a two-year program consisting of 1,800 hours of classroom instruction and field work. The program is facilitated by a pair of program managers who oversee daily operations and the curriculum, as well as program assistants who work directly with the apprentices.

Occupational therapy students from the University of New Mexico also partner with Mandy’s Farm, providing additional support to apprentices.

“The occupational therapy field work students completing their practicum have the option to choose Mandy’s Farm’s AgrAbility Apprenticeship program as their field work placement, so we are often very lucky to have those OT students working with us for part of the program,” Trusty says.

She explains that the first year of the program generally covers ag basics and classroom time, while the second year focuses on apprentices working off-site at nearby community farms and planning and working on their personal plots at Mandy’s Farm.

Trusty reports the current crops at the farm include beans, cabbage, collard greens, corn, herbs, melons, okra, peppers, squash, sweetpotatoes and tomatoes, with the tomatoes and peppers being particular favorites last year. In addition to their personal plots, the apprentices have a lot of input in what gets grown at Mandy’s Farm. She says this year the farm has a few experimental rows of garbanzo beans and quinoa, for instance.

“We like the apprentices to have a lot of input on what will be grown because that’s way more fun and they are able to get a wide variety of knowledge on different crops,” Trusty says. “A lot of the small farms in Albuquerque are very diversified, mixed vegetable production. So, hopefully that gives them some experience that would be helpful at other farms.”

Apprentices receive a $600 monthly stipend funded through the state’s division of vocational rehabilitation for all of their work during their apprenticeship. This is a very important detail, Trusty says.

“We have a strong value at Mandy’s Farm around paid work for folks with disabilities and intellectual disabilities, and we focus on transitioning our students out of the program and into community integrated employment,” she says.

That focus shows up in the final months of the apprenticeship, Trusty adds.

“For the last several months of the program before they graduate, [apprentices] receive intensive job development support,” she says. “That is a classification of supported employment where we support them with getting placed in a community employment setting at the end of their apprenticeship.”

Past apprentices and the current cohort

Seven members of the first cohort of apprentices graduated the program in December of 2024. Trusty says several of that cohort are in agricultural or ag-adjacent jobs.

“We have someone working at a greenhouse, we have someone working doing landscaping for a local hotel, and we have two folks at a compost facility,” Trusty says. She adds that Alejandro, who works as the hotel landscaper, “has just been loving his job.”

“He’s been so successful,” she says. “It’s just been really incredible to see our graduates in their new jobs and how happy and successful they are.”

There are six apprentices in the current cohort that started earlier this year. Trusty reports that, while the current cohort is still new and trying to figure out their unique interests, there is a developing trend so far: Cooking and value-added foods.

“For example, I know today they are making garlic scape pesto and we’re going to package it and sell it at the farmers market this Saturday,” she said during the July 16 webinar. “We also just harvested a bunch of apples and are creating apple butter tomorrow and dehydrated apple slices.”

Trusty says the program tries to lean into the different cohort interests and pursue connections in the community that can support learning. She says they are looking into collaboration with a local program called the Three Sisters Kitchen that does a food business training program.

“We’re in early conversations about whether some of our folks might want to do some of their time next year at the food training program and trying to align their own personal plots at the farm, growing some things for product and selling those and helping them get a business started,” Trusty says.

The challenges of now and hopes for the future

Trusty also talked about the various challenges at Mandy’s Farm. Most of these — funding, good relations with neighbors and the county, soil quality problems — are common to any farming operation. But a unique challenge is the continuing stigma around disabled people broadly, and those with intellectual and developmental disabilities specifically.

“There’s a lot of stigma about farming as a career too, and sometimes when those things converge, there’s even more misconceptions,” she explains. “Sometimes we hear ‘can they do that work? Are they able to be farmers?’ or ‘is that appropriate?’ and that kind of thing. I hope that our apprentices are helping to change that narrative. Yes, they can, and they are wonderful farmers. Anyone would be lucky to have them.”

She adds that she hopes those in the wider agricultural community are open minded and will be willing to listen to people with disabilities.

“If someone is saying ‘this is what I want to do, this is what I’m interested in,’ believe that,” she says, urging people not to have preconceived notions on what someone is able to do. “Creating that next generation of farmers is so critical, so being creative about how we do that and providing some more supports to folks who are interested in that is really important.”

When it comes to the future, Trusty says the goals for the AgrAbility Apprenticeship Program are to be able to increase community involvement and interactions. Mandy’s Farm envision doing so through offering community workshops on agricultural practices, hosting school groups for educational visits and other offerings such as free community farm dinners.

Through these efforts, Mandy’s Farm hopes to increase social capital and feelings of connection and inclusion for their program participants. This will also give more opportunities for the apprentices to “showcase their knowledge and skills which decreases stigma and myths about individuals with disabilities,” Trusty says.

“I just wanted to emphasize how incredible and capable our apprentices are and what a meaningful experience it has been to be part of their growth,” she says. “Our apprentices graduate with agricultural skills, but they also grow in confidence, develop their ability to advocate for their needs, learn how to work on a team and resolve conflict, and develop lasting connections.”

The post Ag Apprentice Program Helps Disabled Adults Grow appeared first on Care Farming Network.

Author: Katelyn Winberg

A five-acre farmstead near Hudson in southeastern South Dakota is dedicated to sowing meaningful lives for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. 

Katie and Chris Zuraff purchased the farmstead they turned into an agritourism venture and an educational nonprofit known as The Specialty Crop in 2021, but the dream began decades earlier. The initial inspiration came from Katie’s sister, Shaina Strong, who had an intellectual disability. 

As the sisters grew up in their St. Paul home, Katie knew she wanted to dedicate her life to individuals with disabilities. In high school, she worked at a Montessori school located on a farm. It was from that setting that she knew exactly what she wanted to create: a space like that Montessori farm, but for older teenagers and adults with disabilities. 

Katie attended Augustana University in Sioux Falls, earning degrees in elementary education and special education. There, she met her husband, Chris Zuraff. 

“He’s always been my biggest cheerleader,” Katie said. “He’s also pretty handy and likes to research.” 

The first part of the dream came in the form of The Specialty Crop LLC. The LLC focuses on agritourism. The farmstead offers two camper sites, a tent camping site and a log cabin, where guests can stay at the farm for $25 to $75 a night. 

The LLC also hosts events like Second Saturdays, a monthly open house where the public is invited to tour the grounds, play games and meet the farm animals. Another monthly event is the summer concert series; August’s concert will take place on the 16th, featuring songwriter Ben Gage. 

The Specialty Crop already sells eggs from its on-site hens and is working to set up a farm stand, using funds from a grant from Poet. The farm stand will feature fresh produce grown by The Specialty Crop farmers during the summer session, farm-fresh eggs, baked goods, fresh flowers and The Specialty Crop merchandise. 

Sustainability is top of mind for the Zuraffs. Their crops are grown organically, and stewardship of the land is central to the farm’s philosophy, Katie said. 

The farmers at The Specialty Crop grow actual specialty crops, ranging from tomatoes to corn. The farm’s name reflects both these crops and its core mission: special education. 

“The garden belongs to both the LLC and the nonprofit,” Katie said. 

The nonprofit, known as The Specialty Crop Collaborative, was established in the spring of 2024 and focuses on education. The fee-based program includes the Sow Program for ages 5 to 18, the Grow Program for adults, and the Reap Program for individuals who have completed the Grow Program and return as mentor farmers. 

These programs are the backbone of the farm. They teach job and life skills to individuals of all abilities, especially those who may be overlooked after high school. 

“Often, these individuals graduate from high school and aren’t given meaningful work,” Katie said. “When given high expectations and a high-value activity, they exceed expectations.” 

The Specialty Crop is the only farm in South Dakota that is a part of the Care Farming Network, a national organization of farms that integrate agricultural practices with therapeutic interventions to promote health, well-being and belonging for people with intellectual and development disabilities, veterans, trauma survivors and those in recovery. 

While the Zuraffs bring these values to the farm, the most important remains family. The couple resides on the farm with their four children, and extended family often helps with operations. 

In the quiet northwest corner of the farm, the Zuraffs and their extended family recently installed a memorial to the person who first inspired Katie’s dream: her sister, Shaina. Shaina passed away in June 2024. 

Her spirit lives on through The Specialty Crop. The Zuraffs have big dreams for the future, including full-time educational programs, more animals beyond their chickens, cats and dog, and even a sauna. 

The Specialty Crop welcomes volunteers and donations. Scholarship assistance is available for those who qualify. For more information, visit thespecialtycrop.com. 

In the meantime, the Zuraffs plan to keep practicing what they call radical hospitality. 

“We want to make an inclusive space for everybody,” Katie said.

The post Farming, camping and community: Welcome to The Specialty Crop  appeared first on Care Farming Network.

Vertical Harvest is part of the new UW CEA Network—uniting educators, industry, and communities to position Wyoming as a national leader in Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA).

This collaboration will help grow green tech careers, advance sustainable ag solutions, support inclusive learning, and drive rural economic impact and includes:

Joint research & data sharing
Student internships & hands-on learning
Co-developed CEA curricula
Innovation between farm & lab

Congratulations to Jennyrae Brongo for being named 2025 Woman of Distinction for Senate District 62! The Ogden Town Board presented a proclamation to Jennyrae in celebration of her incredible recent achievements, being named the 2025 Woman of Distinction for Senate District 62 and leading the groundbreaking of the historic barn renovation at Homesteads for Hope in Rochester, New York. Jenny is a ferociously determined, hard-working, and passionate woman who is both a Founder and CEO, manifesting her vision and helping mentor aspiring care farmers along the way! Congratulations!!!

Simple Sparrow Care Farm is collecting feedback from care farmers and therapists who utilize care farms across the country to inform the development of a trauma-informed care farm online training. Our mission is to expand education and accessibility of trauma-informed care farms across the country. As part of this mission, we are creating an online resource specifically designed to support care farmers and therapists working in green care settings. Your input will help ensure this training is relevant, practical, and grounded in the needs and experiences of the care farming community.

Information for Participants

Simple Sparrow Care Farm is inviting care farm leaders—including board members, therapists, and executive directors—to provide feedback for a new trauma-informed care farming online training, developed by Dr. Jamie Tanner, MACL, DEdMin (Founder and President of the Board of Simple Sparrow Care Farm).

We are seeking participants to be involved in this process. Selected participants will be asked to review the introduction, outline, and first chapter of the training and complete a feedback form. The total time commitment is estimated at 2–4 hours.

If interested in participating, please fill out the application by July 21st.

As a thank-you, the first 30 participants who complete the review will receive free access to the full training (launching January 2026).

Zoe Garderet will be available to support you throughout the process; please contact her at Zoe.garderet@gmail.com with any questions or concerns.

We are deeply grateful for your time and input in helping shape this important resource for the care farming community!

Don’t miss an encore presentation of “Farming with Purpose: How the New Mexico AgrAbility Project Supports Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities through Adaptive Apprenticeship.”

The session will include information on the development of the Adaptive Apprenticeship Program at Mandy’s Farm in partnership with the New Mexico AgrAbility Project, describe the roles and contributions of the project partners in operating the program, discuss funding opportunities that have been successful in its implementation, and address adaptive approaches used to train farmers with intellectual/developmental disabilities.

A question & answer period is scheduled for after the presentation.

Wednesday, July 16th from 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. EDT

To participate in this free, one-hour webinar, click here to access the online registration form.

The post Care Farm Happenings & Highlights appeared first on Care Farming Network.

By Joanna Frketich

I accidentally became the first client of Thistle House Care Farm.

As The Spectator’s health reporter, I was in Brant County on June 16 — a beautiful blue-sky sunny day — to tour the Mount Pleasant farm that will soon provide therapeutic programs, mostly for mental health and dementia.

Despite more than 25 years on the beat, I’d never been to a care farm. While they are common in the United Kingdom and the United States, there are only nine registered in Canada — four of them in Ontario. The nation’s first was Green Care Farms in Milton.

There is so much demand for farm therapy that Thistle House is opening about a year earlier than planned — the goal is to start taking paying clients over the summer. 

Requests started as soon as Keri McCallum and Ken Humphrey made it public that they intended to turn the farm owned by the Campbell family for 165 years into a place of healing and well-being for the public when they took over ownership in October.

The couple have other full-time jobs, so hiring health-care workers to run a variety of therapeutic programs and looking for sponsors to help bring the price from $120 a session to their goal of $40 is a labour of love for their rural community.

“This was a passion project for us,” said McCallum. “We wanted to see if we could give back in some way.”

I was standing among the purple thistles the farm is named for, gazing at a bird flitting in and out of the feeder, when I got the call from my mother. I was in the middle of the farm tour, so I let it go to voice mail, feeling uneasy because she never calls in the middle of a work day.Following the farm’s meandering path, McCallum pointed out the specked eggs of a killdeer that was doing its best to distract me from the nest by faking a wing injury in a spectacular display, when my phone screen lit up with a message from my brother.

“Call mom,” it read.

I had made it to the newly built chicken coop where Freckles — a spotted seven-week-old chick — was lightly pecking at my toes when my brother sent me another message to say the call couldn’t wait until I was done at the farm.

I watched a monarch butterfly flutter around raised garden beds planted during a recent community open house as I got the news that my grandfather had died.

He was 96 years old, lived a full and happy life, and died in his sleep.

But I still felt like the wind had been knocked out of me. My grandfather was one of the most influential people in my life. I named my oldest son after him. For as long as I can remember, he has been my safe harbour.

Grief recovery is one of the potential reasons for visiting the farm, and while I didn’t do the usual therapeutic activities of planting, weeding, crafting, harvesting or feeding the chickens, just being there helped calm the brewing storm.

The idea behind care farms is that spending time in nature and doing agricultural activities reduces stress, anxiety and depression while giving a sense of purpose and accomplishment. It provides social interaction and boosts self-esteem.

“You just feel better being outside and doing this sort of thing,” McCallum said. “I’ve already had so much interest.”

Thistle House is still a work in progress, with hopes of a frog pond, gazebo, more animals and different types of gardens and greenhouses as it opens in stages. Staff need to be hired and more sponsors found.The fine details of programs are being worked out and different offerings like team building are under consideration. Future clients are being consulted, other care farm operators are providing expertise, the farm has a survey on its website and more information is available at thistlehousefarm.ca.But the healing power of nature is already there in full force. Looking out over the seemingly endless fields that surround Thistle House at 4 Campbell Dr., I thought of how much my grandfather would have loved it there.

We would have taken the farm’s scenic route to the future pollinator garden and sat in the shade in comfortable silence, watching the bees go about their work. As I regretfully left Thistle House on that day I will never forget, I was grateful that when I first faced a world without my grandfather in it, I was met with the solace of the care farm.

The post While touring a therapy farm, I got a call that left me reeling appeared first on Care Farming Network.