Community Engagement

We are committed to providing opportunities to share and learn with our community about food, farming, and sustainable agriculture in particular! We're excited to be involved in projects highlighted below to provide access to healthy food for various community demographics, as well as collaborate with educators to provide farm-based learning opportunities!

Collaboration with the Shack Neighborhood House "Farm to Families" Project

We are excited to expand collaboration with the Shack Neighborhood House "Farm-to-Families" Project to be able to offer vegetable CSA shares to interested food pantry recipients.

In 2014, the project was piloted by providing 5 families with a CSA vegetable share from our farm and was funded through a Community Food Security Enhancement Grant through the Appalachian Foodshed Project (AFP).

The Shack staff delivered the produce to the families at the Arnettesville Food pantry and taught people how to prepare and cook the vegetables.

This year, the families that participated last year will be paying a portion of the CSA share cost, and the farm is reserving more production for the project at lower rates. 

We are working with the Shack to drum up funding and support for this project to facilitate participation of more families who might not otherwise have access to fresh organic produce.

If you are interested in making a tax-deductible donation click below to go the Shack website.

Hosting WVU Farm Educational Field Trips

We have enjoyed the opportunity to participate in Owl Creek Farm's long tradition of farm-based sharing and education.

In 2014 & 2015, we collaborated with HR Scott of the WVU Extension Service and Owl Creek Farm owners to host several class field trips from a variety of departments at WVU that were interested in incorporating farm-based education into their courses.

Dr. Davis's Occupational Therapy class enthusiastically grabbed one of Chico's hand-made hoes and put their backs and sweat into helping us to make a garden bed and carry heavy crates around the farm. The class was learning about potential for injury in different occupations.

We also hosted a horticulture class that came to see the plantings and pest pressure, provided plant specimens for a soil science project, hosted photojournalism students developing photo and video projects, and hosted an environmental law class focused on land use.

Contact us if you are an educator that would like to explore a collaborative learning opportunity for your course... or a student that would like to come volunteer at the farm!