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Stacey DeBruin’s Story
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I am an organic farmer! I could not always say that. I grew up as a city girl and later attended UW Madison receiving a Bachelor\’s Degree in Biochemistry. Although I enjoyed my childhood as well as my formal education I did not realize what I was missing until I met my husband and we planted my first (10\’x10\’) vegetable garden. Things have grown a bit since then. We have been married for 12 years, we have four children and my small vegetable garden has grown into a small farm with acres of Certified Organic vegetables. Organic farming has helped define us as a family. It is not just a job, but instead an opportunity for our children to learn about community, sustainability, honest work, quality food and building relationships based on honesty and integrity. It is for these reasons that organic farming is so important to us as a family.
Our grant request is for our family to attend the 2013 MOSES Organic Farming Conference. Although my husband and I attended this conference seven years ago and felt it was an extraordinary experience, our budget restraints have not allowed us to return. With our children growing up and becoming more involved in the farm through their organic egg business as well as their spring organic transplant sale, we feel that it would be paramount in shaping the future of our farm. The conference would also allow our family to gain knowledge from others as well as build relationships with other like minded individuals.
My husband and I have a very clear vision for the direction of our farm. We would like to offer an opportunity for individuals to become closer acquainted with their food. It has become very apparent that we have peaked the interest of our friends, family, neighbors and community members through our organic, sustainable and bio-diverse approach to farming. We have found that people have taken a very personal interest in the origin and methods by which their food is raised. In essence, people want to develop a very close relationship with their food. It is our belief that local and organic is not a trend, but instead a necessity to feed our communities. This movement requires strong leaders at every level and it is our intent to be those leaders. We will do this in part by developing our farm (through the knowledge of conferences and other resources) into an experienced based educational center.
