CSA Blog Series- Community

The wait is finally over our first CSA blog is here!

Not sure if it’s my age, aging, the farm life, or just the weather, but I’ve been hit with a burst of inspiration to share some long-form content—a blog, a peek into White Barn Farm life, and the deeper thoughts and curiosities of Farmer Chris. Here is my first go at what I hope can become a weekly read for you all. The idea is to educate, inform, and inspire. These entries may spark questions, conversation, and comments—and we encourage it all.

I realized that when I share, market, or publicize our most famous farm acronym—CSA—it only means so much if people actually understand what those three letters stand for. Picture me in an executive board meeting with acronyms flying around—I’d feel lost too.

So here is my attempt to define CSA for our ever-growing community: its history, how it has evolved on our farm, and what it means to our business—and to you.

Let’s start this week with the word COMMUNITY.

Merriam-Webster defines “community” as:“A unified body of individuals: such as the people with common interests living in a particular area.”

There are many other definitions I encourage you to check out.

Our common interest is food. We all need to eat. From a young age, I deeply yearned to be part of a community, to participate in one, and to grow one. My run-in with agriculture in college, combined with an environmental ethics class and my background (and love) for team sports, was the right combination to reveal my calling as a suburban farmer.

As I write this—an hour before I head to speak at the local elementary school for our annual EarthFest celebration—I feel an overwhelming sense of community wash over me. I can’t help but think: what are the fabrics that make up our community?

Teachers, firefighters, police officers, builders, sports coaches, public access cable volunteers, breakfast spots, local watering holes, coffee shops, town employees, pizza shops, landscapers, plow drivers, town officials, local musicians, local artists—and FARMERS. We all contribute to our community in some way.We build it through our passions and interests. And I would argue that we make our community healthier—for ourselves, our kids, and our neighbors.I believe that’s what we all want.

I’m sure as you read this, you can picture a community member in your mind—not a cartoon, storybook character, but a real person. Maybe a friend, a neighbor, a loved one, even your own child. Maybe more than one person comes to mind.

Technology—The internet, MySpace (yes, I said it), social media—has made our world feel bigger. It’s connected us to places far away. It’s given many the opportunity to find or form new communities. But we can still have more. We can have the tangible—places we shop, visit, and have real-life conversations with our community members.

White Barn Farm is that place.

It’s a place to talk about your dinner plans, your favorite crops you grew last year, or just sit and enjoy the peace of local agriculture. We’ve done our best—and continue to try—to cultivate a space for people with shared interests (food, eating, the outdoors, community support, sustainable agriculture, gardening) to feel at home. To feel at peace. That’s my commitment to you.

Community is also about people. Growing food on 4 acres is a labor of love. The fruits of that labor are the ability to provide as many people as we can with healthy, sustainably grown, fresh, hand-picked vegetables.

Without YOU, we have no community. No place to sell our food. No 16th Annual Plant Sale. No Summer Nights at the Farm. No trail races.

This engagement is essential for our farm not just to survive—but to thrive.

You’ve shown up for us for 16 years—and for that, we thank you. What keeps us going is you. It’s the desire to grow our community. It’s the need to provide.

That is my ever-evolving, ever-growing definition of community.

Let’s do this together! GROW WITH US. GROW FOR US.

Now, off to spread the gospel of farming, life, and joy to our next generation of budding community members.

Thank you all.

Next week SUPPORTED.

Farmer Chris