Willow Brook Farm & Art Center Inc

Willow Brook Farm & Art Center is a nonprofit permaculture homestead in central NH providing Beginning Farmer Fellowships to ambitious young farmers. Through this two-year fellowship, we provide the resources for beginning farmers to explore their own farming practice in a low risk environment with support, mentorship and collaboration. The fellowship includes: access to land, housing, a stipend, and equipment. Austin & Taylor are the first recipients of the fellowship and your financial support will go a long way to setting them up for a bright future. All donated funds will go directly to covering the Center overhead, providing Austin & Taylor housing, land and seeds. We are grateful for any support you can offer!Farming is tough business – land is expensive and hard to come by, start-up equipment costs a lot, you've got to work long hours and it takes years to set up productive gardens. Most farmers struggle with a lot of debt before they're able to generate a stable income. Farmers just wanting to start out don't have the means to purchase land. With our fellowship, we offer a supportive opportunity for beginning farmers to start their own businesses, while we cover the entire farming overhead. Fellows are freer to experiment with different crops, techniques and markets without the stress of needing to pay a mortgage. Our goals are to support the establishment of their business while encouraging environmentally friendly and sustainable practices. All of their income can go directly to saving for their own land to move onto when it's time to move on.In a time of bigger and bigger companies and huge agribusiness, it's become even more important to know and support the folks that grow our food. We need to encourage young people to farm and help them figure out how to do it sustainably. Small farmers are an important factor in keeping our air breathable, water drinkable and food tasty. We need to encourage permaculture and organic growing.