Our tomatoes are in! They loved all the rain this Spring and the May sun was the perfect topper for a great first week of tomatoes. We’ll have big harvests over the next few weeks so come out and see us at Cowtown Farmers Market and Opal’s Farm Stand.
I had company at the farm this week. We think she’s one of the coyote pups from last Spring. (Sorry I’m such a lousy photographer but I was on a running and vibrating tractor!) This young lady came and spent most of the day with me as I made way for the last succession planting of watermelon and cantaloupe. She stayed about ten feet away all day but was fascinated by the tractor. She kept a sharp eye out for any field mice that ran out as I prepared the beds.
I’m so glad we have a symbiotic relationship with the wild animals that come to the farm. Moreover, I’m really happy they feel safe enough to be there. It speaks to me of the peaceful spirit that exists there. Have a great week!
It’s raining once again so that means it must be Sunday. I am so grateful for the rain – the plants at the farm love it – but it can be a mixed blessing. I have the rest of the Spring planting to do before it gets too hot! Then again, I got to take a nap this afternoon…
This has been another great week at Opal’s Farm. We’d love to thank the Bank of America volunteers that came out Wednesday. I was in Fayetteville, Arkansas for the Growing Hope conference and was amazed when I came home to see the work that had been done. Thanks to Stacey and Joey for all their hard work and making the volunteer event a great day.
As I mentioned, I was at the Growing Hope conference hosted by the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT) in Fayetteville this week. It was an excellent conference reminding (and teaching) us of the importance of what we do as farmers and folks trying to change our local food systems.
I toured two different non-profit farms, Cobblestone Farms and Apple Seeds, and learned of our common mission to fight food insecurity and educate others – especially our kids – about healthy growing and real nutrition.
I also spoke with an amazing group of farmers and activists about the fight for food justice – not just food access and food security – but the justice that gives everyone a seat at the table (both literally and figuratively) to create safe, equitable local food systems. I’d love to give a shout out to all the folks at NCAT who put the conference together. It was one of the best conferences I’ve had the privilege of attending – full of new ideas and re-energizing me for the fight for food justice and equity.
I get to take Sunday off once again. It’s been another rainy weekend here in Fort Worth so it’s far too muddy to get any serious work done at Opal’s Farm. We’ve been blessed by an abundance of rain this Spring, but it’s slowing the planting process. Don’t get me wrong. I’m grateful for the rain. Nothing is better for the farm than nature’s irrigation. The plants love it. I need to get the rest of the seed in to fully enjoy this wonderous time of year. The three-to-five-day rain cycle has really slowed things down.
I must apologize for not having the farm stand active yesterday. Opal’s Farm is in the transition period between early Spring and Summer crops and couldn’t harvest as much as normal. Everything sold at the Cowtown Farmers Market earlier in the day (and a special thanks to all the folks who braved the drizzly overcast day to come by). Please know the farm stand will be there next week with more fresh produce.
I must thank our Assistant Manager, Joey Hughes, for braving the rain and the mud all week to prepare and plant more beds. Joey is overseeing the biointensive section of the farm this year. He’s doing an amazing job expanding and keeping the section growing for our community.
I’d also like to give a shout out to our Volunteer Coordinator, Stacey Harwood, for doing the farm tours for all the kids and the parents who’ve visited the farm over the past few weeks. The farm is something near and dear to her heart and it shows in her excitement to tell everyone about Opal’s Farm.
We finished the week in a big way. Our Executive Director, Dione Sims, accompanied Ms. Opal the Washington, D.C. where she was invited to the White House to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Friday. Nineteen people were awarded the medal. Ms. Opal was in some awesome company the included Phil Donahue, former Vice-President Al Gore, and former Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, among others. We applaud and offer our congratulations to all the recipients, but especially Ms. Opal Lee, our visionary and “Grandmother of Juneteenth”. The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian honor in the country, and we can think of no one more worthy of that honor.
Finally, this may not be a farm event, but I must tell you that I was able to go see my grandson, Lucas, perform in the District Orchestra Concert at I.M. Terrell Academy on Saturday afternoon. I’m so proud and I’m thrilled that he made district. Moreover, he played at a place special to me because that’s where Ms. Opal graduated high school and it’s such an important place in Fort Worth history. Thanks to Fort Worth ISD for its investment in expanding I.M. Terrell High School and honoring its historical significance.
The sun came out as I wrote this so I’m thinking it’s time to get busy. Have a blessed Cinco de Mayo and come see us at Opal’s Farm!
My inbox has been filled with “Best of 2023” lists from the various writers and organizations I follow. As 2023 winds down I find myself thinking about all the wonderful things that have happened at Opal’s Farm and the ups and downs of the past year I’ve encountered personally. So, with that in mind I present to you the Best of 2023 for Opal’s Farm.
Ms. Opal
The biggest happening at the farm is always Ms. Opal herself. Each passing year reminds me of the blessing of her presence. Her love for others, her stamina and exhortations to become a “committee of one”, and her tireless work for our community revitalize us daily to make the farm the place to come for food, education, and the promise of food justice. She constantly reminds us that the walk toward equality and justice is one step and often with one person at a time. Our energy is always revitalized by her leadership.
Tomorrow my wife and I will celebrate New Year’s Day the way we have since I started at Opal’s Farm. At two in the afternoon, we’ll be present for her New Year’s Day dinner – along with a couple of hundred others! When we received the RSVP invitation it listed her accomplishments in 2023 so I’ll share them here:
Texas Senate portrait reveal – hers is only the second woman’s portrait to hang in the Texas Senate Chamber. The other is Congresswoman Barbara Jordan.
Three honorary doctorates
Two events with Cynt Marshall of the Dallas Mavericks
Several assemblies at schools with young people
Conversation with Brian Stevenson for the National Juneteenth Museum
Several visits to the White House
Visit with the Governor to talk about the National Juneteenth Museum
Reveal of portrait for the National Art Gallery
Inducted into the Texas Women’s Hall of Fame
Received two EMMY Awards – both the Governor’s Award and the Award for best documentary
New Awareness
Ms. Opal also visited the USDA People’s Garden in Washington DC and was featured in a national article for the USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS). Both our Executive Director, Dione Sims, and I were invited to a roundtable discussion with Congressman Marc Veasy and US Department of Agriculture, Xochitl Torres Small along with a small group of local non-profits and City Council members.
The USDA is beginning to take a serious look at both local and urban farms and our food system. They opened their Urban Farm office in Dallas this year – one of ten cities to have one. Opal’s is by no means the only urban farm in Fort Worth, but we have had the privilege of hosting the NRCS staff for our area several times as they learn and extend their work to urban agriculture.
NRCS engineers have given us new plans and specifications for better irrigation at the farm. We are changing our irrigation over the winter months so we can grow more food for our community.
New and Old People
The Spring growing season was a time of transition for Opal’s Farm. Our previous Assistant Farm Manager, Amber Carr, helped build the infrastructure for our bio-intensive third-of-an-acre. She left the farm in July, and we were blessed to have Joseph (Joey) Hughes step in this Fall to take over our bio-intensive section. Joey came to us from World Hunger Relief in Waco and has an extensive background in education and urban agriculture. We’ve extended our programs to include agrotourism and educational programs for the community. We’ve also partnered with Delve Experience to a make tours and education more accessible through their website https://delveexperiences.com/ .
We’ve continued to build our partnership with Tarleton State University. In the coming year two new programs for both the community and previously incarcerated individuals will begin. We are presently finishing the curriculum and the final details. We’re excited to share this with you as 2024 begins (more to come!).
On Friday, December 22nd, we held our first-ever farmstand at the corner of Sylvania and LaSalle near the entrance to the farm. We are now able to support a regular farmstand on a weekly basis for the United Riverside neighborhood of which we are proud to be a part of (you don’t have to be a neighbor to come!). We are presently open from 10 AM to 2 PM but this might change as we get more input from our neighbors.
We’ve long hoped to be able to have our own farm stand and the final incentive came in November when we became authorized to accept SNAP benefits. This has been a game-changer for meeting our community goals. Please feel free to come by and check us out. You can tour Opal’s Farm while you’re there.
We’ve had some awesome volunteers this year and particularly this Fall. Stacey Harwood returned from medical leave as our Volunteer Coordinator in September and has done an amazing job getting some big projects done. We’ve had more time this Fall to plant more hundred-foot beds and expand our biointensive beds. We could not have done it without our volunteers and Stacey’s help. We want you to know how treasured and appreciate our volunteers are. You make the farm complete!
There have been so many things that have made 2023 a successful and major growth year at the farm. I have no doubt I’ve left some significant moments out. What I can tell you is that donors really stepped up this year to make 2023 and the coming year special. We’d like to thank the Enterprise Foundation with Enterprise Car Rental and the Stewart Family Foundation for the special awards that will keep Opal’s Farm expanding through 2024. We’d also like to thank KPMG Inc. and JP Morgan Chase for their continued support!
I cannot finish the “Best of” list without a thanks to our Executive Director, Dione Sims. We are a program of Unity Unlimited, Inc. and Unity’s support and belief in Opal’s Farm is what drives us. Dione spends many hours with all the various programs Unity does throughout the year, but she always has time for the farm. Thank you, Dione, for being an awesome leader, a friend, and a mentor!
On a personal note…
This past year has been incredibly hectic. It’s often difficult to “stop and smell the roses”. I, for one, have learned the value of tasking time to count God’s blessings. I am one of the most fortunate people I know. I get to go play in the dirt – to do what I truly love and am passionate about – and I get to do it every day.
Any kind of farming, whether it be urban or rural, is hard, but rewarding work. On the 110 degree days in August I ask the same question – why do I do this stuff? Then, I go to the markets we attend, and I get to see and know the people we serve. You all have made the year wonderful.
I hope and pray that 2024 brings you all joy, peace, and happiness. Thank you for being part of the Opal’s Farm family.
It’s Christmas Eve morning and the rain is falling outside the window of my humble home office. God provided a wonderful Christmas present for Opal’s Farm this year (He always does!). Even after some earlier Fall rains we’ve remained in various stages of drought. We got an inch-and-a-half on Thursday and it looks like another inch or two today!
We had our first farm stand market on Friday from 10 AM to 2 PM. It was a great success and we’re looking forward to being there on Friday’s starting after the first of the year. We can accept SNAP benefits as well. We’re excited! We’ll continue to be at Cowtown Farmers Market on Saturday mornings but serving our neighborhood – United Riverside – is what we’ve worked toward since the farm began.
Joey, Hao and I on our first farm stand day!
We didn’t have a lot of customers as this was our first day, but the customers we did have made it a tremendously successful day. One of the neighborhood members stopped and purchased for themselves and then bought several bags of truly local produce to pass out to his neighbors! What a Christmas present!
We also had the privilege of meeting Hao Tran Friday. Many of you may know about Hao’s Grocery and Café. We’re so excited to have Hao as one of our supporters and customers. She is bringing fresh, LOCAL, produce to Fort Worth and teaching the importance of fresh produce as well as how to prepare it (She’s a culinary instructor at Trimble Tech High School as well.
The Fall and overwinter crops are booming! Please come out to see us next week at Cowtown Farmers Market and then stop by our farm stand the following Friday and visit Opal’s Farm as well!
From all of us at Opal’s Farm and Unity Unlimited, Inc. – have a wonderful holiday and keep family and friends close.
gregoryjoel.com 