Three Wilkes Team emissaries were sent off a few weekends ago to garner information, question experts, and take notes for the purpose of initiating the beginnings of Honey Brook Farms.
The place: Chattanooga Tennessee
The event: Southern States Agriculture Groups (SSAWG) conference.
The end result – Synergy developed merging into energy which desperately needs a practical outlet.
The three, Joshua, Daniel, and I, with also our good friend Jon Hynes, were amazed at the amount of information that can be packed into three short days. Daniel and I went on a farm tour to Circle S Farm located in Georgia on the first day. At the same time, Joshua listened to a session on marketing your produce and keeping good records. In the evening, there were eight or so DVD interviews to watch of different farming production, ranging from cheese making, cattle managing, chickens, turkeys, vegetables, and flowers.
The diversity of sessions grew over the next two days. We purposed to divide and conquer as much as possible with the goal of making the most of our time at the Southern SAWG. A fascinating aspect of the conference was that experts were not only the conf. speakers. We found that the audience, the man you talked with in the hall, or the individual you sat with on the bus, were just as prepared to share what they learned from their enterprises. We talked with a chicken farmer processing 10,000 birds a year and learned a wealth of information from him; also the CPA turned Gardener producing food for restaurants; the Auto mechanic/Welder/Farmer/Farmer’s Market President who enjoyed incredible diversity on his farm ranging from chickens, turkeys, fish, 10 acre garden and cattle. He also has compost piles that are so large he’s planning to employ earth movers to turn them for him.
In the end we came away slightly bewildered by the wealth of information but as we’ve started sorting things out a plan has begun to develop. It still needs some further conversations and considerations but were excited about what the future holds.
The way our culture is heading brings us, as a family, to the conclusion of needing to get back to the basics. We need to know how to grow vegetables in a garden, produce fruit, meat, and eggs in a healthy sustainable way. Going to the SSAWG conference helped solidify this conclusion even more and mushroomed an enthusiasm to tackle the first steps and initiate the beginnings of Honey Brook Farms.
I would be remiss without mentioning the additional joy had at the Neely’s home in NC and then also with the Cleator Family in GA. The former before and after the conference. While the latter during the conference. The Cleator family was a joy to meet and get to know. It’s truly wonderful to meet perfect strangers but in a matter of minutes be able to feel like you’ve known them for quite a long time because of the unifying factor of being children in the Family of God. This is how it was with the Cleator family and all four of us were grateful for their wonderful hospitality. The Neely Family also abounded in hospitality and blessed us immensely.
Now the Weekend of Agricultural Synergy Development has become an historical event. Yet it is definitely one we’ll remember and build upon. For in reality, that’s all we can do as the future is engulfed by the present, the present metamorphoses into the past, and the past quickly grows in proportions.
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