We were joined this year by Jacob Ritter in our farming education program. Jacob comes from Carnation, Washington, and is here to learn about livestock farming.
“I want to grow healthy food, owning some type of agricultural business," he said. "I've learned about orcharding and vegetable farming previously. Now I want to learn about responsible animal farming."
Jacob attended Humboldt State University studying botany for a few years before moving on to work on some farms in Northern California.
He found Deck Family Farm through ATTRA Sustainable Farming. ATTRA stands for Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas and “supports farmers, ranchers, agriculture educators, and land managers at every stage of their agricultural journey,’ according to their website. If you are interested in working on a farm somewhere in North America, ATTRA is a good place to begin your search.
Jacob’s favorite animal at Deck is the goat for their lively and goofy personalities. While we talked we could hear the goat herd nearby constantly bleating at one another. However, he is looking forward to his rotation working with beef and dairy cows. “I would probably pick the cows as my favorite, but I haven’t yet worked with them,” he said.
“I'd like to eventually own land or be part of a community operation similar to here at Deck,” Jacob said.