Saturday October 3rd, is the day that Full Belly Farm’s extended community would traditionally have gotten together here at the farm to celebrate the Harvest. I think that this year would have been our 32nd annual Hoes Down Harvest Festival, with games, music, performance, workshops, crafts, amazing food, petting zoo, and dozens of hands-on activities to learn from and delight the soul. Preparing for and enjoying the Hoes Down Harvest Festival has been a highlight of our lives and the lives of thousands of volunteers and attendees for more than three decades.
This year, amid the uncertainties of the pandemic, we made the difficult decision to cancel the Hoes Down, much to the sadness of those involved. But the Hoes Down is not just a celebration, it is also a successful fundraiser. Every year, the Hoes Down has raised crucial funds for schools, scholarships, youth programs, agricultural land trusts and community development activities that promote sustainable agriculture and the development of future farmers. Many of the small non-profit organizations that we donate to rely on fundraisers from the community for their great work across the state. Added to the sadness of missing the Hoes Down itself, is the knowledge that the organizations that depend on the funds raised may go without, despite the great need for their work.
We are inviting any of you who are friends of the Hoes Down to support our fund drive that will go 100% to the important organizations that we have supported in the past. Even though we cannot dance to the music under the stars, carve a pumpkin with hundreds of others, or engage in the on-farm workshop, these groups must be able to continue their work. Please consider making a donation of any size!
Checks can be made out to Ecological Farming Association (our fiscal sponsor) and mailed to P.O. Box 2, Guinda CA 95637.
Questions (or credit card payments) — 800-791-2110. More information here.
Thank you for considering!
Hoes Down Steering Committee
Today’s Bounty by Maria Grazia
