Hiram Farm has grown leaps and bounds since it first opened back in 2009. At that time, a dedicated group of parents and professionals sought to start a program for adults on the autism spectrum and those with developmental disabilities to give them a place to be in nature while learning real-world skills.
The farm began as an empty 15-acre field that was leased by the Al Couch Farm Trustees and was farmed by six individuals with autism and developmental disabilities. The only amenity on the farm then was a well that the farmers could use. That year, they planted a one-acre organic garden, a small greenhouse was donated by Pete and Elaine Reichel and the livestock program was introduced. Some acreage on the property was also used as community garden space.
By 2010, the program grew to 16 farmers, construction began on the farm’s main barn and a second greenhouse was added. As the program continued to expand in 2011, the Hiram Farm organization purchased a farmhouse adjacent to the farm to use as administrative offices and programming space.
Throughout the years, the farm has added free-range chickens, pigs, goats and cows, along with several outbuildings to house the animals. Programming has also expanded to include a variety of craft projects.
In the last couple of years, many of the staff members at the farm have stepped down, either through natural attrition or retirement, and a new senior leadership team has been established.
At present, the team is implementing an expanded and streamlined method of operations at the farm and has introduced several upgrades that focus on creating more jobs and revenue for the farmers. The upgrades include a new retail storefront – located at 11543 Garfield Rd. in Hiram – and greenhouse, as well as a vocational training program that will give workers practical experience in preparation for jobs in the community. The farm has also welcomed a Miniature Hereford cow and its calf to the farmyard that will be used for breeding to produce more beef to sell at the storefront.
Leading the farm’s new team are Executive Director Daren Houck, Director of Finance Agnes Andrasak, Director of Development Kari Kelly-Regan and Director of Programming Kate Simmons.
“We have, pretty much, a new senior leadership team. We are expanding pretty much everything,” Houck said.
The storefront, adjacent to the original farmhouse, will sell pasture-raised meat, as well as eggs, produce, flowers and crafts made by Hiram Farm workers, which includes soap made with locally sourced goat milk, honey and lavender grown right at the farm, body butter, lip gloss, walking sticks and hanging basket welcome signs. The new greenhouse, the farm’s third one, sits next to the storefront and will be used to grow flowers, herbs and edible greens. Several other varieties of produce are grown in gardens and at two other greenhouses located at the farm.
Prior to the storefront, the farm sold its meat and produce from the farm house, as well as an unsupervised 24-hour produce stand that operates on the buddy system: take what you want, leave the money in a box. The farmstand will remain open to the public.
The storefront and greenhouse opened on May 12, and is completely operated by workers led by Vocational Coordinator Jess Slusher. It serves as the backdrop for the new vocational training program aimed at giving workers an opportunity to learn fundamental job skills. Houck said the farm has always offered vocational training to its farmers on some level, but the new storefront and greenhouse create more intentional opportunities.
Director of Development Kari Kelly-Regan said Joe Persavich is the farm's animal whisperer. Persavich has worked at the farm for 15 years and was there before most of the buildings were erected. "I’ve been doing horseback riding since I was 13, and I used to work in a horse stable," he said. "So I’m really good with animals, they just all like me."
“All of this houses the new Seed program to train farmers to do simple things, like use a cash register, interact with people, stock shelves, grow the produce, bring the produce over,” Kelly-Regan said. “It’s a whole ecosystem in itself. Then we’ll be partnering with businesses to ensure that if our farmers want to go out and work in the community, that we have that next step for them, as well, and have that sort of support.”
Kelly-Regan said the program doesn’t have a one-size-fits-all strategy to train workers; each worker learns at their own pace and with their own set of goals.
“You’ll have one farmer that will stock shelves without a problem, and you’ll have another farmer that needs to take a break, and that’s ok,” Kelly-Regan said. “So, each person has their own goal. It might take one farmer years to accomplish certain things, and then they might just choose that they want to keep staying here, and that’s absolutely OK. It’s a little more involved than your regular work place.”
The farm is also implementing what Houck calls homebases, which gives workers a central hub of operations that caters to the aspect of the farm they prefer: the craft area and woodshop, the gardens and greenhouses, or the livestock area. The homebases will allow staff to focus on each program and support workers more efficiently and will also give workers a smaller community to navigate.
Bob Berg first visited Hiram Farm with his son, Justin Berg, during his son’s final year in public school in 2009. The school system thought the farm might be a good fit for Justin Berg, so the two spent the following summer there to find out. After Bob Berg saw how happy his son was at the farm, and how well staff members worked with him, he and his son agreed that Hiram Farm was a perfect fit. On his 22nd birthday, on Nov. 10, 2010, Justin Berg officially started working at the farm and has been there ever since.
After Bob Berg retired as a biology teacher at Brecksville-Broadview Heights High School, he started lending a helping hand at Hiram Farm. A position opened up at the farm and he took it and soon thereafter became a Hiram Farm board member.
Bob Berg had experience with hydroponic farming, a skill that he had taught his high school biology students in the past, so he suggested to the former Hiram Farm Executive Director De Ann Brewer to build a greenhouse, so the workers at Hiram Farm could learn about hydroponics, too. Brewer agreed to Bob Berg’s proposal. A greenhouse was added to the farm in 2015 through grant funding and a nutrient film technique hydroponic system was donated.
The farmers began growing different varieties of hydroponic lettuce and basil in the greenhouse with Bob Berg’s assistance and, before long, they began selling the produce at a regional market.
“The lettuce was doing so well that the staff would have Justin help harvest it from the hydroponic systems, put them in these trays, and they would drive Justin with the lettuce to Solon to Miles Farmers Market,” Bob Berg said. “Justin got the routine down quick. We would help him put the lettuce in the cart. He would push it in. People got to know him. We made up our own little sign, and for quite a while, we sold it at Miles Farmers Market. The problem was, it was just so well-received, we couldn’t raise enough. They said, ‘This is great, but if you can do 300 more a week.’ We said, ‘We can’t do that.’ But then we graduated and put different systems in. Everything was from grants.”
The greenhouse hydroponic program has grown substantially since it was introduced and now generates several types of organic herbs and vegetables, and there are plans to expand the program further. Bob Berg is still at the helm of the hydroponic cultivation initiative at the farm.
Houck said the farm wants to have more farm-to-fork events that offer the public a taste of organic, locally grown and raised food, as well as other events.
“Long term, I’d love to do sunflowers in that big front field of ours, or a pumpkin patch, and something of a fall festival, give hay rides to local kids,” Houck said. “We want to open up and be accessible and available, so that people can come and have a good time at our farm and experience things in Hiram Village.”
Hiram Farm currently has 34 workers with developmental disabilities and aims to add six more jobs in the future.
“It’s a rewarding place,” Houck said. “The farmers love the farm. They’re happy there. They’re engaged. They’re not sitting in front of TVs somewhere; they’re outside engaging with nature, or they’re using their hands. It’s really purposeful.”