A Conversation with Alicia

Molly: So you've been to the farm a lot but what originally brought you here?

Alicia: Originally this was my retirement plan! I retired in 2020 and was fishing around for something fun and meaningful to do that also tapped into my farming upbringing. I grew up on a small farm in Michigan. One of my nieces was on a break from college and started WWOOFing and went to Montana and Alaska and explained that I could farm anywhere and farm anything. I could go to Florida and farm insects or do what she did and farm peonies in Alaska and I just thought of my god that’s the perfect outlet for me. So I started WWOOFing at age 60 as a way to reconnect with my background and also get out, meet new people, and go to states that I haven’t been to yet. 

Molly: That’s really awesome, we don’t often get to host older WWOOFers, I think the demographic tends to average around 25. Did you know that going in, and have you found that being an older WWOOfer makes your experience unique or different? 

Alicia: No I didn’t know that it was mostly younger people, I thought it would be half baby boomers and half college kids. I think Sue and Holly have hosted a couple older WWOOFers but not a ton and the oldest was in her 70’s if I recall. As long as my health holds up I plan to keep WWOOFing. I think the experiences have been similar to those of my younger co-workers but I do think I am more curious than I was as a younger person and more capable and more able to really enjoy each experience. I’ve been recommending WWOOFing to anyone my age that’ll listen, trying to be an ambassador because it’s so good for us. The stimulation of being around other people and making ourselves learn something new has been amazing and I really see the benefits of it mentally and physically. 

Molly: Yeah I think I read something recently that said gardening and that type of work is one of the best long term exercises for your health. You move in so many different ways when you garden or farm and your mind is focused but also has the space to wander and take in all the quiet. 

Alicia: It’s true! It goes along with being in the Baby Boomer generation, right now I either move it or lose it. In my life I didn’t picture myself climbing scaffolding at this age or hauling buckets for feed over to animals but that’s what I’ve been doing the past two weeks here. I never expected to find that but I feel stronger after every WWOOF and farm visit. 

Molly: What has surprised you the most about volunteering on farms?

Alicia: I am not sure that anything really surprised me at Holly and Sue’s farm because it is so similar to the farm I grew up on. Ours was also a mix of animals and gardens that had to be tended so I’m super familiar with it. And I have only had a couple of other WWOOFing experiences because now I would rather just come to Maine and farm with Holly and Sue. The experiences I have had have been a mixed bag and sometimes very interesting. There is such a diversity of people which I have loved. I have learned that I can do just about anything on a farm for 10 days but by that point I know if I either want to stay and go. I think it surprised me in a good way because I know myself well enough to read a situation and reflect on my feelings about it and choose to leave if it’s not for me. I usually know that in the 10 day window. 

Molly: What is your relationship to the land and farming? Can you speak more about growing up on a farm and how that maybe fueled your life long passion for farming?

Alicia: For me it is something that is in my core. It is a core passion for me because I come from generations of Polish farmers and it simply runs in the family. We grew up on a farm and my dad grew up on a farm and all the way back to our family in Poland. We had to farm to survive and I feel very lucky that I get to have that upbringing and historical experience and deep rooted passion. My family had to farm to sustain themselves but they also liked it. They loved being connected to the land and the seasons. My dad had Draft horses; that was his passion and it exposed all of us to everything having to do with horses and turned into this life long appreciation for all animals. It’s embedded in me. I don’t get to have that same outlet at home. I do have massive flower gardens but we don’t have enough space or sunshine for a full garden at our house so coming here is where I get that. I am able to go into the greenhouse and dig in the dirt and know that the result is growing things for Sue and Holly and others to enjoy. 

Molly: You have had such a close connection to the land and animals in your life, is there anything you hope to see change in our wider food systems in the US?

Alicia: I think for me that question makes me think about food packaging. We grow this perfectly beautiful food and then we wrap it in plastic. As a cancer survivor I do blame plastics in part for what happend to me and what happens to so many people. There has been such a jump in cancer deaths and diagnosis and the common denominator for me more than anything is the plastics. I would love for us all to go back to milk in glass bottles and for people to use cloth bags for all their produce. Right now so many of us are just forced into using the plastic because it comes straight into the supermarkets in that packaging. I didn’t grow up with this plastic and I don’t like it. 

Molly: It would save us all so much money in the long run too. The cost over time of just using a cloth bag versus throwing away all that plastic alone is worth it. 

Alicia: Absolutely! And I know that cost is prohibitive to people. There are many people living paycheck to paycheck but I know what the grocery stores are making and it’s astonishing how much money they have. They could afford to make the switch and give away cloth bags to us all. 

Molly: Okay, pivoting, what is your favorite food from the farm?

Alicia: From Holly and Sue’s farm it has to be the chicken. Their chickens are astonishingly good. We grew up with chickens like that and now going to the grocery store back home is such a disappointment. I love their chickens and I love to eat them!

Molly: As do I! Final question, if you can pick just one favorite memory or story from the farm what would you want to share with us?

Alicia: Holly and Sue asked me this too before I got out of the car at the train station! One of my favorite new memories is going to be all of the work that we did collectively on the new chicken palace. It was a true community experience and it felt like we were working in concert with each other. Everyone was supportive and we were all accepting of other people’s experience level so I was never asked to do anything above my pay grade. I could do everything I was asked. No one yelled if there were mistakes and we all worked together so nicely. It was such fulfilling work to do that construction project with everyone. 

Molly: It was really cool to see the end result with the whole roof on yesterday. It was a long day of work but it’s so cool to feel like everyone is harmonized and ready to get the work done. Everyone had their job but stepped up too when we needed extra people somewhere or someone was taking a break. I love how open Sue and Holly are about having us all learn things while working on a big project we need to get done. It is such a safe learning environment. 

Alicia: Exactly. And we all make mistakes, even Ryan sometimes!

Molly: Even Ryan! 

Alicia: And it is part of what makes him such a great teacher and lead on this project because he is very open about when he makes mistakes and then he’ll figure his way out of it. It really sets the tone for everyone else and gives them permission to also make mistakes and learn from them. 

Molly: That is how we learn after all! 

Alicia: Yes!