Help Florie Reach Her Dreams

Hi, I'm Florie Consolati. I have found this amazing opportunity to be a farmer again, but I need your help getting there. Wye Mountain Flowers and Berries Farm, located just west of Little Rock, Arkansas, has been searching for someone to take over their farm so they can retire and I've been longing to be a farmer again. It's a perfect match. Will you help me get there?  ***If you'd rather send funds directly, my Venmo account is @FlorieConsolati or my physical address is 20608 Hwy 113 Bigelow, AR 72016 - THANK YOU***  Florie in 2016 when she was the owner-operator of North Fork Farms LLC in Lander, Wyoming. The Deal:  The first year would be a lease of the three-acre flower portion of Wye Mountain Flowers and Berries farm. After a year or two of doing this, I hope to then have enough capital saved to be able to buy the entire farm. I just need your help in getting me started!   With $5000: I would able to pay for the lease for the first year to get me going. The lease includes the use of all farm equipment including the tractor, cooler for flower storage, flower delivery van, in-place irrigation system, etc. It's a great deal.   With $9000: I would be able to pay for seeds, bulbs, and compost for my first year. The main flowers at the farm will continue to be zinnias and sunflowers, but I’m additionally interested in expanding the farm’s flower offerings in the spring months. With such a long growing season (zone 7b!), I’d like to offer Valentine’s Day bouquets of red lilies, ruffled tulips, ranunculus, and anemones, to name a few!  With $13,000: I would be able to cover the cost of moving me and my sweet little family from Montana to Arkansas.  *FINANCIAL UPDATE 12/29/2019* I have been able to raise enough to cover the lease and the move down to Arkansas, yay! I just need $4k more to cover the costs of seeds and materials for the upcoming growing season. Will you help me get there?   Wye Mountain Flowers and Berries Story: Wye Mountain Flowers and Berries grew out of Beth and Butch Eggers' desire to return to Arkansas and own a little acreage. In 1997 they landed on the perfect property on Wye Mountain with sandy loam soil, which is perfect for growing flowers and berries. The farm was established in 1998 with about twelve beds of flowers and expanded each year until it now has a total of about three acres of field-grown specialty cut flowers. In 2008, seven acres of berry fields were planted with eight different varieties of blueberries and four varieties of thornless blackberries. Since 2011, the Eggers have enjoyed hosting families, as they visit and enjoy a morning of picking fresh berries and choosing a beautiful bunch of fresh-cut flowers. In addition to sales from the farm, their flowers can also be found at the Hillcrest Farmers Market, Westover Farmers Market, Catering to You, and at local florists. Wye Mountain Flowers and Berries strives to raise the highest quality flowers and berries possible using sustainable practices and offering their products at a fair and reasonable price.  After spending 21 years building the beautiful farm that is Wye Mountain Flowers and Berries, Beth and Butch are ready for a life of retirement. They have been searching for the right person to take over the farm to carry it into the future. Their search is over. Wye Mountain Flowers and Berries Website: https://www.wyemountain.net Wye Mountain Flowers and Berries Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/WyeMountain/ Florie's Bio:  I have been passionate about gardening my entire life. As a child, I spent many days with my grandparents at their property in Lee, Massachusetts, where I was raised. My grandfather John Consolati was known in the community for his excellent gardening skills and for having the first ripe tomatoes in town every summer. He taught me all about gardening, from how to sow seeds, how to water, how to pick lettuce, how to turn the compost, the list goes on. On top of all the time with my grandpa in the garden, my mother, who is a huge fan of wildflowers, took me on many nature hikes where we would identify wildflowers, count them, and take pictures. This instilled a huge passion for flowers within me. Even my name means “flower”, although I am named after my amazing late grandmother, Florence Consolati.    After finishing my Master’s Degree in Watershed Science in 2014 and feeling burned out on my carer in science, I needed a new direction. That’s when my gardening hobby grew into a full-fledged farm. From 2014-2016 I was the owner-operator of North Fork Farms, LLC in Lander, Wyoming. North Fork Farms was a two-acre farm specializing in vegetables, herbs, flowers, eggs, and meat chickens. I sold at two local farmers' markets and offered a local delivery service each week. My business did very well and I absolutely loved my work. I was on track to receive a grant to fund the installation of a greenhouse on the property to expand the farm even more when life took an unexpected turn and I had to leave everything behind me and start my life completely over. I have been pining to be a farmer again ever since. So when the ad for Wye Mountain Flowers and Berries showed up in my Facebook news feed, I couldn’t believe my eyes. It was perfect. My conversations with Beth and Butch led to a visit to the farm in July, and I fell in love. This farm is not only stunningly beautiful but incredibly well run, and Butch and Beth were the kindest, most welcoming hosts. It felt like coming home. And their business was booming! I met many happy, loyal customers who have been buying their flowers and picking their berries for years. Additionally, there is tons of potential for growth at this farm. I have many ideas for the future of the farm, including building a farm store, planting an orchard of fruit trees, offering flower classes and workshops at the farm, offering cooking classes utilizing the berries at the farm, among others. Rewards for contributing to my cause: - For $5-$25 contributions, I will send you a thank you card and post a social media shout out. - For $26-$50 contributions, I will send you a Wye Mountain Flowers and Berries Sticker, a thank you card, and I will post a social media shout out. - For $51-$200 contributions, I will send you a Wye Mountain Flowers and Berries Tshirt, Sticker, a thank you card, and I will post a social media shout out.  - For contributions greater than $200 I will send you a beautiful bouquet of flowers, a Wye Mountain Flowers and Berries Tshirt, Sticker, a thank you card, and I will post a social media shout out.  For local backers: I will hand-deliver a homegrown bouquet of fresh-cut flowers from Wye Mountain Flowers in addition to a Tshirt, sticker, and thank you card. For non-local backers: I will mail you a homegrown bouquet of fresh-cut flowers from Wye Mountain Flowers in addition to a Tshirt, sticker, and thank you card. THANK YOU!