Please Help Us Out!
Edwin and Brian take a break
Eric Vanbleck thins peaches from a ladder in June, 2007. Photo by Elizabeth Coe
Danny washes garlic
Nate weeds flowers
Dear Friends,
We are writing to you to ask for your support for our work. On April 20, 2007 the first guys from Almost Home, a halfway house project of Dismas House in Worcester, came to work on our farm. These are men just out of state penal institutions who have addiction problems and are looking for a new start.
It is a regular occurrence now to see these men every Friday for most of the year on our farm. In the past 15 months fifty or more souls have come here once a week, tugging at our hearts as they shared their stories and we got to know them. We have learned from each other as they put their sweat into helping us do the daily and interminable work on our diversified and essentially hand-powered Massachusetts organic farm. The farm has provided a different and safe place for them to grow and thrive as individuals with the help of hard work and a supportive community. For us it has broadened our view of the world and brought us into contact with people who are quite intentional about making improvements in their lives - truly an inspiration for us.
Last summer the farm hired Brian and Edwin when they graduated from Almost Home. They helped us raise the bar on farm work. We put up 3 new hoop houses, started a winter CSA, cleaned up very old projects that needed doing, and increased our farm production by about 30%. 2007 was the first year that we were able to cut and store all of our hay in a timely fashion. But the most important gains were human ones. Edwin met Becca, who was also working here, and they now share a new baby. Brian grew in self esteem and started taking music lessons.
In early 2008 we incorporated the non-profit Many Hands Sustainability Center to help us further our work with training men coming out of jail. The year 2008 has brought us another batch of wonderful Almost Home volunteers, plus we now employ Edwin as assistant farm manager and three other graduates - Eric, Danny and Nate.
If we could, we would hire every interested graduate of Almost Home. Even with these four, however, we are running near the bone. We are attempting to pay a living wage to folks with a lot of financial need so they can bring their lives back in balance.
We need help to continue this work. Last year we had no idea that this is where our lives were heading, and this year with 4 former ex-prisoners on staff we are not sure where next year will take us. We will wisely use financial donation that you make for their training and support. Make your tax deductible donation payable to "Many Hands Sustainability Center" and mail to:
Many Hands Sustainability Center
411 Sheldon Road
Barre, MA 01005
Here on our website you can read some personal stories about this work we are doing.
Sincerely,
Julie Rawson and Jack Kittredge
Many Hands Organic Farm and Sustainability Center