Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Michael and Nicole Smith. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Michael and Nicole , we’ve been so fortunate to work with so many incredible folks and one common thread we have seen is that those who have built amazing lives for themselves are also often the folks who are most generous. Where do you think your generosity comes from?
God. Through our biblical teachings, we are told to be generous. Our goal with the Smith Farm Co-Op is to help and encourage our community to grow crops for themselves and to trade within our local neighborhood.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
Smith Farm Co-Op is a local farming community focusing on self sustaining farming, helping our community start and maintain their own microfarms, and trading of goods. We love to answer questions about how people can start their own small gardens that can yield a large enough produce to support their own needs, and possibly those around them. Ideally, we’d love to see our co-op grow into a community of small farmers who can trade their goods with each other and have a great network of fresh, local food.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Our growing family means increase in food, which has significantly gone up in cost. We like to budget and know that if we grow our food, that we could easily grow more than we need. It is important to us to grow sustainably and without chemicals. We researched and looked into old fashioned ways of farming and have implemented using used coffee grounds and banana peel water, among other things, to help nurture the plants we grow. Michael is also an Eagle Scout- he’s great at building garden beds, trellises, and supports for our crops. There’s always a learning curve, but each year we improve our tactics and share our knowledge.
As we end our chat, is there a book you can leave people with that’s been meaningful to you and your development?
Easily the Bible. We could hoard all of our knowledge in growing and keep everything we produce for ourselves. We don’t want that. We want to give back to others, help people learn to grow their own food, and share our goods within a community who desperately needs affordable food. The Bible tells us in Luke 3:10-11, “Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same.” We want to obey God and if we can grow crops and share not only our food, but also his word while in fellowship with our community, it’s a win.
Contact Info:
