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Farm-ily Reunion Takes Place Sept. 21-22 at Hazzard Free Farm
As many readers of Local Food Forum know, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reports that the average age of farmers is almost 60. To ensure a resilient and reliable food supply and steer the nation toward a more sustainable farming system, we need to promote a new generation of farmers.
That's why Local Food Forum supports the mission of the National Young Farmers Coalition and its local affiliates, including the Northern Illinois Young Farmers in our own region.
That said, all work and no play isn't healthy, and Northern Illinois Young Farmers has a plan with its 3rd annual Midwestern Farm-ily Reunion. This year's weekend event, on September 21 and 22, takes place at Hazzard Free Farm in Pecatonica, located about 14 miles west of Rockford.
Getting to hang out with awesome farmer-advocate Andrea (Andy) Hazzard is enough reason to go. But there's much more. Here's how the organization describes the event, complete with poetry. A link to register follows.
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When: September 21-22
Where: Hazzard Free Farm - 5111 Ahrens Rd., Pecatonica, IL
Cost: sliding scale starting at $20 (no one will be turned away for lack of funds)
We kicked off our year with an Earth Day Celebration called - taking care of the planet, taking care of ourselves. Laura Fredrickson-Gosewisch from Vital Ground Farm joined us to talk about her tips around taking care of our mental and physical health as farmers. Her philosophy around rest and deep care has been a strong guiding force for the event this year.
“Just as depleted soil will not produce healthy crops,
we don't do our best work when we are burned out.
Sustainability is about regeneration,
allowing nature to replenish what we use.
Life requires resources from our body
that must be replenished, too.”
Farm-ily Reunion aims to be that space where you can fill your cup and leave feeling replenished. My guess is that this hasn’t been an easy year for anybody. Our collective and personal griefs weigh heavy alongside election year anxieties and ever-demanding farm businesses. Our chapter strives to hold these things while continuing to return to and organize around joy and care.
Joy because your joy is your sorrow unmasked (Kahlil Gibran) and care because care is the antidote to violence (Saidiya Hartman). And in the practice of centering, we organize ourselves around what we most care about and want to see in the world (adrienne maree brown).
This year we’re celebrating on the fall equinox, a special time of year where there’s nearly equal amounts of daylight and darkness at all latitudes. So come and celebrate balance with us! Celebrate joy and sorrow! Celebrate all that you’ve harvested and all that is yet to be harvested! Celebrate the fact that you’re doing it! Celebrate that it’s hard! And celebrate that it’s oftentimes beautiful!
Come to be held in community by your fellow farmers, by the creek that flows through Hazzard Free Farm, by the willows that sway gently in the wind. Come to have your belly filled with the best ingredients Illinois has to offer. Come to dance, laugh, and share stories. We are so excited to be gathering with you all again.
This year we’ll be joined by Candid Fare for dinner. In addition to cooking up a delicious meal, they’ll be facilitating an interactive dinner experience on community building. This is a family-friendly, farmer-friendly, friend-friendly event. Together we will gather and take a collective deep breath as we close out the 2024 growing season.
We’ll see you there!
In community,
Northern Illinois Young Farmers
Additional notes:
We want your delicious farm fresh ingredients! Fill out this form if your farm would like to source farm-ily. We are not asking for donations and will pay for all farm products.
We will not be having farm olympics this year due to our efforts to center rest and slowness, especially for the team planning farm-ily. We invite you to arrive early, though, and set up a hammock, splash in the creek, and play some lawn games.
We’re starting the sliding scale at $20 this year instead of $0 as we have the last two years. We made this change because as this event has grown, the cost of putting it on has also grown. We are still offering travel stipends and no one will be turned away for lack of funds. Email us at northernillinoisyoungfarmers@gmail.com or send an anonymous text to 314-471-2461 with additional questions.
*Poster by @austyuniverse
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