REAL FARMER CARE - Care is love in action. Support self-care programs for farmers.

The 639th recipient is Jordan Goldsmith of Moonrose Farm in Rehoboth, MA. Jordan writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “Self care is essential to replenish your body with much needed rest, relaxation, and repair. Massage is the most important way I stay flexible and avoid injury so I can stay farming for as long as possible. I feel that taking care of our bodies is easily overlooked, especially in the heat of July, but it's important to remember the da

The 638th recipient is Tyrike Brown of Tyrike Taiku in Lafayette Hill, PA. Tyrike writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “Self care is very important to me. I have based my whole business on offering self care practices to my local community through the herbs I grow. I believe that, in order to work and participate as a part of the community, we have to take time to rest and be in nature.” How I might use this $100 self-care award: ”The $100 award would

The 637th recipient is Shaunia Flowers of 2 Cents Homegrown in Springfield, MA. Shaunia writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “Self care to me is relaxing after a day of seeding, planting or harvesting.  Taking sometime to relax my mind and body. Rather it be yoga, pilates, sauna, rest, light therapy, hot bath, grounding myself while enjoying a picnic, getting a massage or just soaking my feet.” How I might use this $100 self-care award: ”I would go to

The 636th recipient is Sarah Rose Kareem of Samad Gardens Initiative in Bloomfield, CT. Sarah Rose writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “It means physical care of our bodies while doing this backbreaking labor. Care in the way of nutrition, physical/manual stretching, massage, and muscle recovery, and physical rest. It means emotional and mental rest from the overwhelming capacity required to tend to growing crops and manage a farm, run a business and

The 635th recipient is Sadie Higgins of Astarte Farm in Hadley, MA. Sadie writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “Many of the farmers I know have left farming because, although their passion for growing food is still there, they get burnt out. To me, self-care means having the opportunity to give yourself the gift of TIME to take care of both your body and your mind. Farming is a full time job beyond the work day and there are a lot of sacrifices that c

The 634th recipient is Carolyn Schew of Diamond Hill Farm in Winterville, GA. Carolyn writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “Self care is what powers farming. We can’t just use our body and not give back to it. I suffered an injury (cervical disc herniation) last year that blew up my world and it was only through the self care of gentleness, body work, acupuncture, physical therapy, therapy therapy, massage, and self love that I’m back farming and reco

The 633rd recipient is Alana Toro Ramos of Proyecto Vereda in Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico. Alana writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “It means taking care of myself so that I am healthy, strong and more capable of taking care of others.” How I might use this $100 self-care award: ”I will use it to get some much needed laboratory tests done.”  Most important self-care needs that contribute to my well-being as a farmer: "The most important thing for me is e

The 632nd recipient is Victoria Rogowski of Laurel Glen Farm in Shelton, CT. Victoria writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “I left my career as a teacher in 2020 in order to support my husband’s 100-year-old farm and raise our young son. I now love what I do here full time and feel fortunate to be raising 2 kids on the farm. Unfortunately, I work very early mornings and late nights so that I can spend many of the daytime hours with my kids. It’s rewar

The 631st recipient is Haidee Sticpewich of Phillies Bridge Farm Project in New Paltz, NY. Haidee writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “Having a supportive and inspiring community around me, with a farmer network that shares resources (like this one!) to promote comfort and sustainability in our day to day work doing this hard and important labor.” How I might use this $100 self-care award: ”I would use this award to buy a new pair of work boots! It h

The 630th recipient is Wenona Racicot of Chockalog Farm in Uxbridge, MA. Wenona writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “It allows me to keep doing this physical job even though I’m no spring chicken anymore.” How I might use this $100 self-care award: ”Toward a massage for my aching body!”  Most important self-care needs that contribute to my well-being as a farmer: "Bodywork like chiropractic or massage therapy are what I need most.” #realfarmercare

The 629th recipient is Joseph Monroe of Valley Spirit Farm in Campbellsburg, KY. Joseph writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “Just keeping yourself healthy enough to keep going.” How I might use this $100 self-care award: ”Maybe some new boots and hand moisturizer.”  Most important self-care needs that contribute to my well-being as a farmer: "Just having the time to go to the doctor and dentist and to have disability insurance.” #realfarmercare

The 628th recipient is Kenzie James of Relinoca Farms in Sumter, SC. Kenzie writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “Self-care and well-being, in the context of farming and ranching, means intentionally caring for my physical and mental health so I can continue this work safely, sustainably, and long term. This is especially important to me as I am a veteran and deal with service-connected physical and mental ailments daily. I own a plant nursery and it

The 627th recipient is Jasmine Lillich of The Wild Locals in Clatskanie, OR. Jasmine writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “For me, self-care and well-being in farming mean learning to care for myself with the same attention I give to the land. It’s not about spa days or vacations—it’s about the daily choices that make this work sustainable for the long haul.” How I might use this $100 self-care award: ”I’d put the $100 award toward my massage therapis

The 626th recipient is Alexis Williams of iGrow Community Garden in Tallahassee, Florida. Alexis writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “Farmers are the most important workers in the world because we need food to survive. Agriculture requires humility, consistency and hard work to see meaningful results. In ancient times prior to colonization and modern technology, farmers were much more valued. However in today’s world, farmers are often dismissed and

The 625th recipient is Robert Goodson of Goodsons Gardens in Jacksonville, Florida. Robert writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “Self-care means taking time to recharge amidst the season where there are always tasks to accomplish. Especially for me it’s taking time to spend with my family doing some fun activity.” How I might use this $100 self-care award: ”I would likely use the funds to pay for a fun activity with my family like getting food from a

The 624th recipient is Chelsie Ver Mulm of Orange Creek Farms in Rock Valley, IA. Chelsie writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “Self-care to me means being able to buy something or do something that is not a necessity for the farm. As a farmer that is on meds for anxiety and depression, and a farm that is on the edge of having to shut down, all my current money goes to keeping the farm going and feeding the animals we have. Having any amount of money

The 623rd recipient is Jenny Jonak of Dragon Song Farm in Eugene, OR. Jenny writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “Self care means being able to take a break and pay attention to a farmer's individual needs instead of just the farm. It's hard sometimes to do that because there's always something that needs attention on the farm, and I'm sure that I'm not the only farmer who lies awake at night worrying about a weather event, a new pest, or how I'm goin

The 622nd recipient is Rebekah Brown of Farmer Brown's Market Garden in Groton, NY. Rebekah writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “Self-care and well-being are so important for farmers, but are often overlooked in the farming community. I think people think farmers should be able to work through any pain and shouldn't have to take time for themselves, but this is far from the truth. Farmer's also do not have a lot of money to spend on themselves. Unfor

The 621st recipient is Melody Smith of Holcomb Farm in West Granby, CT. Melody writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “As a vegetable farmer, self-care means taking time to myself to de-stress and reset, especially during peak growing season. It's important for me to carve out self-care time during the farm's busiest time of year because it's also the time when my stress levels both physical and mental, are at an all time high. My favorite types of self

The 620th recipient is Kymara Lonergan of Thunderhorsehollow Farm in Ulster Park, NY. Kymara writes: What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “Self-care means being able to take the time to get health care or to get some type of relaxation away from the farm to enable good mental and physical well being. If I can't take care of myself, I can't take care of the farm in an effective manner. It feels like falling dominoes sometimes.” How I might use this $100 self-c