Born and raised subsistence farmers, 200 refugee and immigrant families have been able to return to the soil, on 37 acres in Orchard Park.
The Somali Bantu Community Organization founded the farm in 2017. Since then, seven immigrant communities and Black Buffalo-born families have joined the Somali Bantus.
With Burmese, Karenni, Congolese, Somali Bantu, Burundian, Liberian and Bangladeshi farmers, their work runs as far as the eye can see on both sides of Burton Road.
From 3 to 6 p.m. on Mondays, everyone is invited to stop by 5701 Burton Road to see what the neighbors grow for dinner. Plus, shop one of the most diverse produce selections any Western New York farm stand can offer.
That means okra, tomatillos, kale, collards, scallions, onions, tomatoes, basil, lettuce and Swiss chard. Also, green beans, Asian and Italian eggplant, peppers – sweet and hot – and summer squashes.
“Each of our programs is a little different, but the community farm program addresses fresh food insecurity in communities, as well as access to those cultural foods and the tradition of farming,” said Kristin Heltman-Weiss, the collective’s executive director.
Its three-year incubator program helps develop new farm businesses. There are presently 28 small farms under the Providence Farm Collective umbrella.
“It’s not just about getting food, and about getting food they want,” she said. “For a lot of these people, it’s a continuation of their life. They were farmers before they came here, and they want to farm, because that’s what they do.”
The Providence Farm Collective community-supported agriculture program – farm subscriptions – has all the customers it can handle this season. “In September or October,” said Heltman-Weiss, “we’ll start taking orders for next year.”
Find out more at providencefarmcollective.org.
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