In the Aug/Sept issue of MaryJanesFarm, “The Experiment” (on newsstands July 14), we led you here to my daily journal for a chance to win a free sampling of Kuaiwi Farm’s products featured in our “Every Woman Has a Story” section. Kuaiwi Farm is a five-acre organic farm in Hawaii, where owner Una Greenaway grows Kona coffee, macadamia nuts, cacao, bananas, avocados, pineapple, oranges, lemons, limes, passion fruit, and more. I didn’t get a chance to meet Una in person, but for my 62nd b-day and Mother’s Day this past year, my daughter surprised me with tickets to Kona for just the two of us. Visiting Kona was life-changing for me, especially because now I’m hooked on Kona coffee and fresh macadamia nuts:) It’s time for me to share my newfound joy in life.
For a chance to win a 16-oz bag of Kuaiwi Farm’s Kona Old Style Medium Roast Organic Coffee AND an 8-oz bag of her Raw Macadamia Nuts, tell me about a woman farmer you know (or know of) and why you admire her in the comments below. I’ll toss your name in a hat and draw one lucky winner in mid-September, when the Aug/Sept issue expires on newsstands. Stay tuned for more magazine-related giveaways!
If you’re not yet a subscriber to my magazine, MaryJanesFarm, subscribe here for just only $19.95 a year:)
The lady farmer I admire the most is my mom! She grew up on a dairy farm and was the only child of 8 to go to college. While raising four girls she always kept a big garden and taught us to honor the earth. When I was 9 we moved to the country and she’s kept a “gentleman’s” farm with everything from pigs and goats to sheep, chickens and rabbits. She made her own cheese and we ate our own meat. She is now 74 and keeps a garden, chickens and sheep to this day. She’s my hero!
Kona coffee is one of my favorites too! I stumbled on it in the 1980s when it first made it over to our stores here. There is something very special about it’s deep rich flavor that is unlike other coffees.
I know two young women locally who run a large organic herb and flower farm. They sell regularly at the farmer’s market and by order from their farm. One of the women has survived sarcoma cancer and treatment all while working! When she has time in the winter months she attends our knitting group. I love her can do attitude and passion for gardening and showing incredible strength even when faced with hard chemo treatments!
my farmer woman I admire, is my mom’s best friend jolene. She always does CSA and she has a green house and cows!! she also raises two boys (one of them is her husband).
She taught us how to garden, help birth a cow, raise pigs and shear a rabbit. She is always putting these crazy ideas in my moms head and plays a mean game of spades.
I have a dear lifelong friend who was recently widowed. She works long hours in her urban backyard “farm garden” growing all kinds of lovely fruit and veg from heritage organic seeds. She shares these with neighbors, friends and those in need.
I’m blessed by her commitment to sustainable methods, she challenges me to get out and get my hands in the soil by sending me packets of the seeds she gleens from her bountiful crop.
I admire my aunt. They are now retired as farmers but still keep up on all the latest farm news. When I was little her house was always bustling. She is the woman I model my own household after always ready for hospitality, being frugal not wasteful, a godly mother & housewife. She has approached her older years with grace & I hope to continue to follow her example.
I admire my grandmother, who has been gone for quite a few years now, for all the dedication she had in helping my grandpa with the farm while he worked in the factory and on the farm. She was always willing to drop what she was doing to help him get ready to plow or whatever so he wouldn’t have to do it alone. She kept the animals fed, the garden nice & neat, canning & freezing (when they finally got a freezer!), and any animal husbandry that he needed assistance with. I also watch her kill a chicken by wringing it’s neck because he was too “bossy” and attacked a grandchild. She also was willing to help any neighbor or friend at the drop of a hat. She inspired me in so many ways! I’m forever grateful for all her advice, helps when I needed them & her dedication to grandpa and the rest of her family! I only hope that I in some small way can do the same.
I’m not saying this so I get an edge in the give-away, but my inspiration is you, MaryJane!
My “Aint” Marie was a very earthy woman — smoked a corncob pipe and drove the tractor into town when Uncle Wayne had the truck off somewhere else. She raised a family on a rocky hilltop farm in southern Indiana with a woodstove in the kitchen and no indoor toilet (she insisted that Uncle Wayne put running water in the kitchen, because she needed it for canning). She could fry bacon and eggs for a harvest crew in the morning, get all the laundry “warshed” and hung on the line, can 50 quarts of sweet corn, feed the crew their dinner at noon, and put up a few dozen jars of pickle before “setting down” with her fancy work before time to hash up and shell beans for supper. She was not what you’d call lady-like, but she was as gentle a soul as ever walked the earth and would do anything for you that didn’t involve being away from the home-place overnight. Her house garden was an acre or more every year and she grew every kind of corn, tomato, and pepper that the farm circulars could come up with. She helped birth the cattle, fed and watered the stock, and kept a flock of chickens that looked like the front page of a glossy magazine. When grandchildren came along, she insisted they call her “Grannybaby.” I never saw her look at a television or sit without some kind of work in her hands and I never saw her cry. She laughed through things that would have made a Marine weep and lived her whole life right until the end — running an errand for a friend.
I don’t aspire to be like my Aint Marie — but whenever I am planning my garden in the last throes of a cold Pennsylvania winter, I think of her rows and rows of beautiful pepper plants and the pantry full of shining jars of yellow nuggets of corn, and I get to feeling very optimistic about the planting to come and the harvest to follow.
Thank you, Granny-Baby, for keeping me in touch with my ethnic roots.
I actually know several women farmers, but I’d like to mention a dear friend, Michelle (cannot give last name) who is totally amazing! She raises everything imaginable, has outdoor gardens as well as a greenhouses. She is also a Farmers Market vendor and has a very attractive display with a vintage/retro look. She has mentioned to me more than once how she loves the Farmgirl Connection and Mary Janes Farm magazine.
She has a sunny, upbeat attitude, is so friendly and courteous, treating her customers and friends with utmost respect. Furthermore she had purchased and wears several aprons that I’ve made!
I’d LOVE some good coffee too, so thank you for the giveaway opportunity!
CJ
20 years ago, I met Karen, otherwise known as “The Plant Lady” in our mountain community of Florissant, CO. She has been high altitude gardening (9000 ft) for 30 to 40 years up here. Started out hauling water in 5 gallon buckets to keep her gardens growing. She now has an organic, high altitude nursery, serving the gardening needs of our community. Karen is a self taught green thumb Goddess! With an extensive gardening library. I have always admired her grit and determination even in the hardest of times. Living in the mountains presents it’s own set of challenges ie. Fires, droughts, wildlife, altitude. Karen is a true Mountain Mamma with a spiritual attachment to the land and life. She has made a true “Paradise” on her 5 to 7 acre property. Karen has now graduated to her life’s desire to share her wealth of knowledge offering what she has coined “Fireside Chats” classes on organic gardening that she holds in her home. She enriches more than teaches her gardeners experience in all areas of gardening from the simple act of planting a flower to the more difficult prospects of “spinning straw into gold” for mulch, how to compost, the science of maintaining a greenhouse, watering 101 and so much more. Although she is not a farmer in the truest sense, she farms souls offering yoga at the new and full moons in her gardens. Paradise Gardens is just that, a refuge from the outside world. I couldn’t be more proud of my friend and I often tell her so. I believe we need to tell our friends how much we appreciate them and how much we admire them.
I sincerely admire Bev Thompson of Futility Farms in Gilman, Wisconsin. Here’s a short exerpt from the website: “Futility Farms is a small grass farm consisting of 126 acres located in north central Wisconsin in a little town called Gilman, (population 412). Futility Farms is the home of natural beef – raised without the use of growth hormones, without a regular dose of antibiotics and without the use of chemical fertilizers on the land – the way beef should be raised, the way it used to be raised.”
http://www.futilityfarms.com/
The meat she sells is melt-in-your mouth delicious.
And just for fun, my birthday is June 24.
I would have to say my husband’s late grandmother, Georgie. She was a treasure. A widow 3 times who raised 13 children mostly by herself, ran a farm and still found time to feed homeless, take in foster children and just love. Miss her!
Beth Rohrer, Rohrer’s Orchards in East Petersburg, PA. Most delicious apples, and peaches! Working hard day and night with very few complants!
My friend Pam- Pam has built her own chicken coop and helps take care of the three horses, goat and chickens. I’ve taught her to quilt and she makes beautiful quilts for her family. The best thing of all is Pam shares her eggs with me!!!! 🙂
I forgot to mention…Pam works full time at a demanding job, helps her mother and raises two active girls!
My mother she grew alot of produce in the 50s and sold to many of the grocery stores in the area. She was a very hard worker and could put most people to sham would never ask for help and when having a problem would always seem to find a way to get the job accomplished.
I admire Todd of Forks Farm, here in PA. She has worked side by side with her husband and 3 daughters to develop and expand their farm into a fabulous and lovely, welcoming spot. From farm visits by local schools, therapy based visits for patients, supportive services for many organic vendors in the area, twice monthly Farm Markets with vendors, musicians, providers and special activities for kids– she is always looking for ways to positively impact her local community and expand the services available at the farm. Worked with her for a number of years to process grass-raised chickens for sale at the Farm Markets and for CSA groups and am always blown away by her level of expertise and energy. She is always on the go.
It has to be my friend Rose. She raises goats. Her dream has always been to become a licensed Wisconsin cheese maker. She finally accomplished it just before starting to get social security! She’s also all about education and has started teaching cheese making also. I’m really proud of her and “Tea Rose Toggenbergs”.
I’ll have to mention one I know of. I don’t remember her name, but she and her female friend owned an organic farm back in the early ’90s. They planted and harvested according to the moon, which I thought would be a lot of extra effort. She raised pigs, and visiting her farm was the first time I realized just how big pigs are! I admired her for her sticking to her planting beliefs, working the farm with only females, and her belief in her ability to expand and be successful (she was putting in an orchard last time I was there).
My favorite women farmer is Heather Faye. She raises the cows we get our raw milk from along with chickens, eggs and pork. She also makes wonderful soaps! It’s a family operation, just her and her husband and kids. They provide wonderful, healthy food in our area!
I admire any woman farmer……the one I’d like to mention is the lady who runs Hawk Hill Blueberry Farm in our area — she dedicates so much of her time and life to make sure that we have the best blueberries and best experiences come summer. I really respect her.
Linda is like a second mom to me and she and her husband Andy are organic dairy farmers here in Washington state. I admire her for all her hard work and time she invests into the cows, calves and milk. Not to mention she is a wonderful baker!!
Letitia Wheeler Shumaker currently of Blackfoot, ID. I admire her because she took me under her wing during our college years in Rexburg, ID when I was a brand new transplant from MD who was experiencing major family problems. She invited me to spend holidays & other special occasions with her on her parents’ potato farm in Grace, ID. Her kindness helped inspire my husband & I to become the pecan farmers we currently are in San Antonio, TX & a 23 year+ friendship that survived her divorce.
A good friend of mine works full time outside the home, but still manages to grow a crazy amount of organic veggies AND keep chickens while chasing her one and a half year old around! She inspires me all the time to TRY more, and DO more!!
I don’t know any one woman show farmers, but I have a friend who’s name is Tamara, and they’re farm Chandler Pond Farm is very impressive. Not only are they active farmers, visiting farmer’s markets, taking on interns, but she is also a homeschooler. She is vivacious and fun, and just a great all around person.
The lady farmer I know is one of my sisters. Her name is Patsy and she does it all and has all her life. We grew up on a farm and that is what we know. She is always busy. Has several gardens and does several farmer’s markets. Is a 4-H leader and take care of livestock. She can do anything most men farmers can do. I truly admire her.
Your the shining example of a female farmer as far as I am concerned.
One of the best farmers I knew was a dear friend I called Grandma Nancy. She inspired me so much by her simple life. She told of getting up early at 4 a.m., fixing breakfast, doing laundry and hanging it up, then chopping cotton ’til noon with her children, fixing lunch and hanging out the laundry with more chopping cotton ’til supper. Then washing dishes, folding laundry, and “quilting to keep my family warm” in the evening. This precious lady taught me how to make jelly from apple peelings so nothing was wasted, old fashion cooking, hand piecing and quilting, and more. She lost three children while they were young and another out of five before she passed away yet I never heard her complain. She was a bundle of inspiration and love than anyone I knew and inspired me to live simply and godly. I still carry on her tradition by raising chickens of my own, quilting, and deeply loving my family.
The woman farmer I admire the most doesn’t have acres of garden, doesn’t have farm animals but she does have a can do attitude and a backyard in the city that feeds her family and friends during the year. My daughter, Holly, has several garden beds, a compost pile, knows how to can, freeze and dry the produce. She is a very talented gal!
I have an incredible Niece an her husband…It is love second time around for them both..Farm boy meets farm girl an they both lead different lives working, until they meet one day by accident thru my husband…They both lived an worked on farms as kids an as their love grew so did their love for farm life to part of them..After they were married they moved closer to his family’s farm an started working they beef their family grew for them to eat, all the while holding down very demanding jobs..As time went on their garden got larger an larger to feed them …My Niece works long hrs, but comes home to the solace of the farm an her lovely hens whom she has fondly all given names too with one special one she calls Mama’s girl who rides on her shoulder…I admire her with everything a working woman has to do along with taking care of her family that she has managed to also have a little farm of her own in her backyard with the lovely chicken coop her hubby an her built for her girls..We are fortunate to be able to go an take care of her flock , their golden retreiver an main coon cat while they enjoy time away..It allows me to be able to see what farm life is for this city girl in a small way an I enjoy every minute we are there….An I bugged my hubbie so much we finally put in a small raised garden last year of our own, it had been many a year since we had had one , now to work on the chicken part…hehehe enjoy their lovely story as I have…..
Teresa Bedtelyon -her willingness to give so many children from other mothers a farm life childhood with unconditional love.
My friend Jennifer Bower and her husband Bob run kearsarge gore farm in Warner nh, we used to sell at farmers markets next to them almost 20 years ago and they are still hard at it. She/ they are the only farmers I know that work four seasons on the land, logging in winter, maple syrup production in spring and a huge farm in summer and fall with one of their children helping. They have inspired new in my own much smaller endeavours…
My mom and dad bought a farm after Dad worked for the government for 35 years and “retired”…for 19 years..till Dad’s death..they farmed…they raised sheep and baby lambs which my girls…their granddaughters..got to bottle feed at times…and, they cut over 96 acres of hay each year…and, donated a lot to farmers further south when they were hit by droughts…mom once put up over 100 bales of hay that had been cut by herself..dad was ill and it was going to rain, and all farmers know once the hay is cut and has dried it has to be baled and not get wet..so, mom got the tracker out..the baler..and went to work…and even loaded them into the barn by herself..a woman of strength…mom loves her coffee so this would make a nice surprise gift for her… mom now resides in a little cabin in the Virginia woods…and still gardens and helps the neighbors…at age 85!
I would have to say my inspiration for growing things is my grandma! I can still see her, in my minds eye, in her garden out back, in her dress and apron. There was nothing that woman could not grow. She knew all sorts of ” tricks” from the “old country” that I remember and use to this day!
My farmgirl hero is my friend Shelley. She is a single mom of three teenagers, working an 8-5 day job, and gardening in her off-time. She loves to put together pretty little baskets of her fresh produce — tomatoes, peppers, squash, whatever is ripe at the time — and top if off with a flower and maybe a jar of jelly, and present it to friends on their birthdays. She has taught her children to respect the earth and each other. She has supported and encouraged them as they raised chickens and goats for school projects, and they have willingly worked long hours in the hot Texas sun to help her in her garden. Shelley is the one who introduced me to Mary Jane’s Farm magazine.
I admire my sister. She and her husband have always had a large garden, orchard, herbs, and various berry bushes. They generously share with others as well as can and preserve what isn’t used. Last year they stocked a new pond, and this year they have ventured into the realm of chickens hoping they will begin to lay in the next few weeks. They also home school my nephew.
I live in the city and the closest farmer I know keeps bees. I helped harvest the honey once and it was an eye opening experience. The honey was amazing and my friend truly knows her way around managing all those bees!
I know Catherine Smith. She is so knowledgable about her garden and her willingness to share her love of gardening has been a blessing to me!
There is a farm gal in Indiana that I admire because of her and perseverance. Sheena was raised in a dairy farm family. On the farm she learned to work hard. At home her mother instilled her with the knowledge of how important an education was.
She showed great control early when her mother developed breast cancer and pasted away while Sheena was in high school. She continued to help raise her younger sister and brother while attending school, being active in 4H and readying herself for collage.
Sheena graduated from college, married and has 3 beautiful child today and overlooks the operations of the farm. She is an inspection to us all.
I’m inspired by many women – Mary Jane, the neighbour lady across the road who spent 25 years building up her soil (what patience!), dairy farmers’ wives who get up and milk cows, feed, plant gardens, can etc. to help make a living – they do everything to help support their husband from tractor work to doing laundry.
The lady farmer I most admire is the lady from whom we buy our raw milk. She continues to farm on her family’s farm with her husband and children. They raise milk and beef cows as well as fruits and vegetables. She works tirelessly all year long.
My late mother would have to be it for me, she grew up on a farm with 1O sisters and 1 brother. Money was scarce and she learned the simple ways in life in turn teaching my 3 brothers and 1 sister as well. She loved coffee more than anything so this would be a great tribute to her.
My friend Ann Diaz. She worked tirelessly to turn 12 acres if leased land into an organic farm. She grew beautiful vegetables and wonderful flowers for ourocsl farmer’s market. She is beautiful, inside and out. She recently list most of her lease to the ever expanding subdivisions in our area. She has taken this in stride and continues her quest for healthier food by hand mixing an organic mineral fertilizer. She is an amazing woman!!!!
Sorry about typos. Typing in a hurry gets you in trouble. Local farmer’s market….list most of her….of leased land.
I know of a woman in the next town by her products really. She raises free range chickens that produce olive green eggs and packages and sells them in the local supermarket. Right near the egg case, the small local market allowed her to have an electric photo frame which she uses to display and cycle through photos of her farm and chickens. I really enjoy seeing women that have that entrepeurial spirit like me, taking it to market.
My favorite lady farmer/farm wife was my Grandma. As a child we were given free range at the farm, interacting with all the animals, plants and wildlife. We were city girls so that made it all the more amazing. My Grandma loved animals, worked in the dairy part of their farm, took care of the chickens, raised 8 kids, loved ALL of us grandchildren and COOKED. Looking back I am amazed by all she did to feed all the workers, keep her old farm house clean and still have time for all of us. Just thinking of it makes me appreciate the wonderness of it all!!!
My favorite farm woman was my mother. When we moved to the country in 1941, she spent the first summer in the wild blackberry patches around our small farm, picking berries that she canned and made into wonderful jam. My father planted a big garden every summer and tended it. Mother and my grandmother put up tomatoes and made jams and jellies. We picked and canned or froze garden produce from beans to tomatoes. During strawberry season, we picked boxes and boxes full of sweet Michigan berries. Mother took them into town and sold them door to door. Our home was always open to friends and family who would drive out to visit. I often think of her wisdom, industry, and initiative and hope I reflect some of this in our home and our small farm.
My favorite is my sister. She is 78 and raises Tennessee Walkers in Montana, she calls them Working Walkers because she used her personal one for rounding up cattle and bison,also endurance runs. She has always had a Can-Do attitude and knows how to Make-Do also. I admire and love her for her spirit and work ethic; even at -9 degrees.
I greatly admire Barbara Kingsolver. Her book “Animal, vegetable, miracle” is still one of the best books I have ever read and I aspire to be like her.
I’m really impressed with the hard work of the farmers at my local farmers’ market. I know how much work it is to garden successfully!
A beautiful woman farmer I know lives on the coast of the San Juan. Originally haI Ling from England, she fell in love on Friday harbour, took 6 years too get her visa as a full time resident and now grows produce for local restaurants and the farmers market. A beautiful person she is.
I don’t know too many women farmers. I do know an elderly lady at church that tends to a massive garden each year. She’s almost 80 years old, and she hauls water by herself from rain she has collected to water her garden. Not only is she an amazing woman of faith and a great example to all women, but she is so fascinating to talk to and glean gardening wisdom from.