On October 6, the Log Lunch community heard from three student speakers, all of whom had received summer funding from CES to work on farms. Sarah Gardner explained that the summer is the peak of growing seasons for farmers, meaning many are looking for extra help over these months, and that the three positions the students talked about are funded by CES every year, in addition to many other farm jobs.
Campbell Leonard ’25 worked at Roots Rising, a non-profit organization based in Pittsfield that aims to empower youth through food and farm work. The organization runs farm crews made of teenagers throughout the year, in addition to operating the Pittsfield Farmers Market. This benefits both the farmers and the teens, as small farms without large staff welcome the extra help during busy seasons, and the farm crew is a paid position, in addition to giving teens an active way to occupy themselves.
As a summer farm crew intern, Campbell led the crew on weekly visits to different farms in the area, building relationships with farmers over the course of the summer. Farm tasks varied, from weeding to mulching to harvesting to fertilizing, and some of their time was also spent on leadership activities and community service, such as helping out at the Berkshire Dream Project, a local food pantry.
“That was my personal favorite,” Campbell said of the community service days. “That interaction with community members and being of service was so meaningful for the kids.”
It could be challenging to keep motivating the teens when farm work got tough, and Campbell and the other interns often turned to music, games, and emphasizing gratitude to fulfill their responsibilities to the farms.
Campbell said that this summer was one of feeling “immersed and invested in a place and the people that live there,” and that farming and working with teens helped her develop a sense of how she wants to feel at the end of a workday in the future. “I want to feel that I’m being of service to a community that I am supporting and is supporting me in return, and that I’m focused on the tangible world, what’s under my hands and who is in front of me.”
Emma Sandstrom ’26 worked as the Sustainable Farming Manager and Outreach Assistant at Spring Creek Farm in Palmer, Alaska. Spring Creek Farm is a 1.5 acre vegetable farm on the Kellogg Campus at Alaska Pacific University. The land is a farm trust, and is required to be used as educational farmland, an important protection when many other farms in the area are being bought up for industrial use.
“The goal of Spring Creek is to be a center for sustainable and socially responsible living, promoting resilient food systems and project-based learning, especially about social justice,” Emma said. Produce from the farm goes to their CSA customers, as well as the Alaska Native Center and homeless shelters in the area.
Half of Emma’s time was spent farming, while the other half was focused on community outreach. Most of her time was spent on the farm’s CSA program and market, closely interacting with community members, organizing volunteer days, processing food stamps, and talking about ways to make produce more accessible.
“People learn more about where their food is coming from and form closer relationships with farmers in the area,” she said of the CSA program. It is mutually beneficial for the farmers, as farming can be risky, and customers paying upfront for a weekly CSA subscription gives farms more security.
Part of Emma’s job was also being enrolled in a sustainable farming class, which included experimental fieldwork in addition to assignments and readings. She also wrote the farm’s weekly newsletter and ran its social media account, informing customers about happenings on the farm, what they would find in their CSA each week, and developing recipes with seasonal produce.
Nick Bolman ’26 worked at Cricket Creek Farm, a small dairy farm in South Williamstown, and the Williamstown Farmers Market, in addition to doing farming research with CES.
“I wanted to support local farms,” Nick said of his research and work. “Small farmers have been struggling, especially since the pandemic, and I wanted to be more connected to Williamstown as an agricultural place.” In his research, he looked into farming on college campuses, and his work allowed him to build relationships with local farmers for potential future collaboration with the college.
Nick’s days on the farm and at the market often started before sunrise. At Cricket Creek, he helped take care of the cows and perform extra repair and maintenance tasks, and learned about sustainable pasture management from the farmers. At the market, he helped set up the tents and ran the Williamstown Farmers Market station, where he processed SNAP and other community benefits.
The farmers market faces an uncertain future, as the parking lot on Spring Street may not be available in future years, and there will be a new manager, but Nick emphasized the importance of the market to the town. Many small local farmers depend on it to sell their produce, and extra food from the market also goes to local food pantries.
“It’s a place where people from different walks of life can all convene,” he added. “I had interesting conversations with people I wouldn’t have had otherwise.”
The Log Lunch chefs impressed as always, with pumpkin thyme risotto, chive pancakes, maple roasted carrots, spicy garlic oil greens, and chocolate cake for dessert.