Your Farmers

The people behind your food.
Annabel holding a yellow tote of chard leaves

Annabel

Owner | Farmer

I grew up on a homestead in rural Vermont. My parents had a dream of living off the land and my siblings and I were part of the work crew. I couldn't wait to get away and I went as far as East Africa where I spent my first two years after college working as a small business advisor in the Peace Corps. Since then, I've enjoyed working in higher education, nonprofits, consulting and recruiting. My off-farm job involves advising on careers – pretty ironic for someone whose own journey has been anything but linear! My favorite part about farming is getting my hands in the dirt (despite my hatred for dirt under my nails!) and watching seeds grow. I also love picking and eating the bounty and sharing it with the community.

Eric putting a rubber band on a bunch of chard

Eric

Farmer

I grew up in Salem, OH. My parents grew up on dairy farms and were adamant about my siblings and me attending college and getting real jobs. After majoring in mechanical engineering, I worked for nearly 25 years as a software developer, a job that paid well, but was never personally fulfilling. In 2007, after reading The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan, I decided I wanted to be a farmer. Through additional research, I learned farming doesn't require hundreds of acres of land and large tractors. When I told my parents my new career goal, they told me I was crazy. My farm mentor tried numerous times to convince me this was a stupid idea because farming is too hard and doesn't pay well. While there is some truth to that, I've never been happier in my life.

Heather smiling behind drying garlic stalks

Heather

Farmer

Having grown up in the suburbs on the east side of Cleveland, farming was not on my radar as a child. Though I loved helping my father tend to his vegetable garden and digging in the dirt was a favorite activity of mine, my understanding of farming and all that it could entail was pretty limited. After graduating college with a degree in Anthropology and Studio Art, I joined AmeriCorps and for two years served in West Virginia and Southern Ohio working with organizations focused on community development and conservation. It wasn't until I found the New Farmer Academy with Countryside Food and Farms that I fully revisited farming as a tangible career path. Through that training and experience, I found myself at Bay Branch Farm and dove into the world of sustainable agriculture. I have loved every moment of it since!

Emma reaching across buckets of delphinium, cosmos and strawflower at the farm stand

Emma

Farmer

I grew up in suburban Cuyahoga Falls with a small backyard garden full of peonies and wild strawberries. We had bowls of tomatoes lining the counters every summer. Even though I did not grow up on a farm, I’m sure my childhood, which was full of a lust for these home-grown fruits and vegetables, had a big influence on my career path. I went to college at Cleveland State University to pursue a degree that would enable me to help farmers through fair trade organizations. I decided to volunteer through WWOOFing and spend a summer in Alabama. The rest is history! I dropped out of college and moved to Alabama to farm full time. Since then, I have worked and managed flower and vegetable farms in Virginia and New York as well. After my husband and I had our first child, we moved back to Ohio to be near my family and we were lucky enough to connect with Annabel and Eric. We now live on the farm with our two children and our loud dog who you know through our windows!