While Virginia’s Eastern Shore is known for its majestic sunsets, beaches and rural country living, a short drive off the main roads of Northampton County reveals a persistent poverty area dotted with aging homes that residents have little or no means to repair. Many properties are uninhabitable due to deferred maintenance and passed down through generations in a derelict condition.

It was 2019, Richard Smith was unemployed and had just lost everything he owned in an apartment fire. To say Smith was down on his luck was an understatement but his two children provided him with the motivation to pick himself up and turn his luck around. 

“It’s just me and my two kids,” said Smith. “They’re the ones who provoked me to do this and I just couldn’t give up on them.”

Who doesn’t love breaking open a fortune cookie to find the hidden message inside? The vague prophesies are more fun than fact but intriguing, nonetheless. In Farmville, Va., Piedmont Habitat for Humanity is turning that concept on its head by putting two sturdily constructed halves together to change the futures of four new homeowners with help from USDA Rural Development (RD).

While on-time takeoffs and landings are big on the lists of most casual flyers, owners of private and corporate aircraft look for world-class service and hangar space when selecting an airport. The Shenandoah Valley Airport (SHD) was high on the first and beyond capacity on the second when they approached USDA Rural Development (RD) about a loan to build a new structure on their 400-acre property.

In 2015, Lovefood Farm launched their farm off one rented acre with a small Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), Saturday farmers market and a neighborhood farmstand. Lovefood spent a few years at the Farley Center Farm Incubator, which allowed them to eventually purchase 30 acres of land in Stoughton, Wisconsin.

This land is where we find David Bachhuber on what could easily be called one of the first nice days this year in Wisconsin.

The motto of the Barreras Family Farm and Farm Market is “Feeding the Body, Enriching the Mind.” 

Mariel and Anthony Barreras, along with their eight children, bring this motto to life. Together, they run the farm and store – and do so much more.

The Barreras family specializes in grass fed beef and pork. They also run a Community Supported Agriculture Program delivering farm-fresh vegetables, meat, eggs, and other products through a weekly subscription. These products, produced with care, certainly feed the body.