Farm Chores with Audrey🧑‍🌾 🚜 Audrey K, writer of many of our social media projects, recently joined program facilitators Ashley Derico and Tracy Omerzo, maintenance worker Navada Smith, and two dedicated residents for a brand-new experience: farm chores. These daily responsibilities are part of a broader system of work crews — such as the garden crew and cleaning crew — that form the backbone of meaningful work in our community. Farm crew plays a particularly vital role in our nutrition program, as many of the animals raised on the farm contribute directly to our food supply. We raise cows, chickens, pigs, and turkeys for meat, and collect eggs from our laying hens. We also care for Bantam chickens One of our residents who has participated in barn chores for 20 years, oriented me to the chicken tractor, an enclosure on wheels which is moved from place to place to provide birds with fresh grass every day. They also collected eggs twice today. Another resident helped clean the stalls and provided new sawdust and hay. We also replaced newspaper in the chicken coops. Interestingly, only the farm animals who participate in therapeutic activities are named: Boomer, Shiloh, Zoey and Brandi, large ponies and mini horses who participate in Equine Assisted Learning, goats Noah and Blackjack, and Thomas, the playful barn kitty. My brief hour of chores impressed me with the simple routine and rhythm – and hard work – that sustains and nourishes our community while providing satisfaction of work well done. (fb)

Please join us next year for Summer Solstice on June 26, 2026 at The Chagrin Valley Hunt Club! Reach out the Development Office if you would like to be a part of the planning process or be a sponsor 440-247-0912. (fb)