I am a thirty-two-year-old, stay-at-home-mother of two, market farmer. I grew up in a suburb of Atlanta, GA, knowing that I would never fit into the city girl lifestyle. I moved out to Missoula to attend the University when I was eighteen. After four years of dragging my feet through elementary education courses, I changed my major to the non –descript, Liberal Studies.
I took the PEAS class for my last year at college and fell in love with farming. I joined the Peace Corps, and moved to Guatemala to work with rural farmers on sustainable and organic agriculture. I left the Peace Corps after 14 months and moved back to Missoula. After working for a few years with other organic vegetable growers, my partner/boyfriend and I decided to give it a try on our own. I quickly became a new mom and, eventually, a new landowner. My time is split between farming duties and motherhood duties, usually working on both at the same time.
ABOUT MY BUSINESS HISTORY:
When we bought the land in Moiese three years ago, we also bought a somewhat established and successful small farming business. The woman who owned the land had established a customer base in Missoula, selling tomato starts and vegetables at market. She also sold hundreds of pounds of shallots to a grower’s co-op. I continued fulfilling these two markets and have established new ones as well.
CURRENT BUSINESS:
I now sell tomato starts in Missoula and Polson in the spring, vegetables at the Polson market in the summer, and vegetables throughout the year to the grower’s co-op. We raise and sell a small amount of dairy goats, and a tiny amount of alfalfa/grass hay. During the summer months I work full-time at home and my husband works full-time at home and part –time for a farmer up the road. In the winter we work at a Youth Home in Ronan and I substitute teach. The business, by no means, has been our sole-source of income.
MY VISION AND GOALS:
I really want to see our farming business support my family. We entered the business with the desire to live the lifestyle of a farmer. We had little knowledge on how to manage the farming business. (I haven’t even registered our business with the state of Montana) As you could imagine, every year we learn a “shit ton”, pardon the phrase. We become more efficient and wiser in the ways of the farmer. We spend a little less and earn a little more. However, I know that we are just squeaking by. I constantly feel that our lack of business knowledge is going to make everything fall apart. I want to take our passion for the lifestyle and make it a successful business. Many days I feel as if the business is taking off, dragging me with it, rather than me taking the reigns and driving the business. I want to know where we are going and how we are getting there. I want to expand production, employ workers at a fair wage, and keep my kids’ parents at home year-round.
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Nicole, what a pleasure to know about you. Thanks for posting this, Love, Ruth
We all support you here in South Carolina. Hello to the kids and our best wishes to you. Linda
Jude and I are in awe of your skills, and your committment to caring for the earth and its inhabitants. Love to that hard-working man of yours and those most excellent babies! Susan
thanks to all the support out there from my family and friends! much love to you all!
Nicole,
Good luck! What a committment. Give Cal and the kids a huge from us.
Love Andrea and Tom
Nicole, we wish you the best of luck with your contest and know that you would use the knowledge in the best way for your family and our world. Please give our love to Cale and the children. Take care!