A Call for Help: Supporting Our Jamaican Crew After Hurricane Melissa

The People: Our Farm Family

For years, our farm's success has depended on our crew of six seasonal workers who travel from Jamaica each year (legally on H2A visas). They are absolutely crucial to our operation, ensuring that our crops get planted, cared for, and harvested on time, and that our apples get pressed to make our delicious ciders. They keep the farm looking beautiful for our thousands of guests and do it all with a smile.

These men work incredibly hard, often six days a week, and show up any time we need their help. They are like family to us, and we so deeply appreciate their sacrifice to be away from their homes and families for nine months every year.

Two of these men have a combined 25 years of dedicated service with us.

My wife and I lived with them for years before we were married, and they were at our wedding. They weathered the pandemic with us and helped us keep the farm running when the world shut down.

They have truly become valued members of our local community, and now they need our community’s help.

The Urgent Need: Hurricane Melissa

As of this writing (November 1st), Jamaica has been devastated by Category 5 Hurricane Melissa, the strongest storm to hit the island in decades. Communication infrastructure has been severely damaged or destroyed, and our six crew members have still not made contact with their loved ones back home.

Based on news reports, the areas hardest hit by the storm are suffering from catastrophic wind damage, flooding, and the loss of homes and livelihoods. We know their families are in desperate need of support to begin the long process of recovery.

The Plan: Direct Family Relief

We are raising funds to provide immediate and direct financial relief to our six crew members and their families in Jamaica.

| Goal | To raise as much money as we can to support their recovery. |

| Timing | Funds will be dispersed as soon as we can establish contact and determine the individual needs of each worker. |

| Fund Management | Donations are being deposited into a dedicated bank account set up at the Community Bank of Cazenovia. |

| Disbursement | We will split the donations between the six workers based on their individual needs, distributing the funds in the form of secure cashiers checks. |

In the spirit of complete transparency, we will continue to post updates here as we figure out the extent of the damage.

Please help us care for the men who have helped us so much. Every donation will go directly to our crew and their families to help them rebuild their lives. Thank you for your support!