At That’s the Dream Farm’s open house I took an opportunity to thank many people who helped us to get to and through that day. I would like to extend those thanks here also.
Archery turned out to be the hit event at the open house. Many thanks to the best city neighbors ever, Jon and Anne Gossette, for helping to set up the archery station and teaching those who joined in. Archery is not a normal offering at TTD, but it does draw upon the concepts of focus and relaxation that we help participants to experience at the farm. Allison Grippe did a beautiful job with goat yoga and sharing her personal experiences of Refresh Equine Assisted Learning. Other friends helping were Dave Hassebrock with yard games, Courtney Peterson and Steph Hassebrock with decor and creativity, Shane Peterson with helping build our chicken coop, and their son Fischer for summer employment. Gerri Leach called and said she and Eric Johnson of Jail Chaplains had been praying for for us and offered to help at our open house. Kayla’s brother, Tyler, and friend, Dosa, assisted us with getting ready for the event. Everyone’s help was invaluable and greatly appreciated.
We want to thank our wonderful country neighbors also: Ray and JoLynn Johnson who have the connections and answers for any questions we have about local resources. Ray and also Jason Wang allow us to have walking and riding paths on the perimeter of our property that are very beneficial to Refresh program participants.
It takes a lot of team work to make the Dream work! Nora made a photo book showcasing each member of the team. Christian keeps the farm and equipment running and provides all the support needed wherever it is needed; Kayla makes us look good in flyers, made our volunteer shirts, keeps things clean and provides snacks for group activities; Amanda helps wherever we need and helps with things off the farm that allow us time on the farm; Nora helps with input on editing and social media. Everyone makes sure the animals are well cared for and receive lots of love. Ron provides business and handyman advice and helps with both.
Kimberly Hess takes a lot of shit from us (well, well composted horse manure) and turns it into beautiful flowers at Prairie Petals downtown. We have more composted manure to give away if you would like to add a wonderful supplement to your gardens.
Eric Erickson put my building and farm layout dream down on paper and built it. Jesse Soper with Northwest Excavating did an amazing job of fixing our slope and drainage issues so we can use and enjoy the property year round.
Thanks to everyone who came out to our first open house! We were humbled at the turnout of so many wonderful people, family and friends old and new. We enjoyed a beautiful evening sharing our Dream with you and hope you felt the spirit of Refresh! I hope you enjoy the slideshow: starting with the “intricacies” of moving goats to the yoga pen.