Barnraiser
Donation protected
As the Alameda Fire raged through the city of Talent, Oregon, we are incredibly fortunate in that our families were spared. However, our Green American Farm was not so lucky. The fire destroyed 40% of our farm’s crops and the barn facility we had spent the last two years rebuilding was burnt to the ground. And, Jon Erskine, who had been overseeing the rebuild, lost all of his tools and many personal family items.
Green American Farm is an Oregon certified and licensed farm for growing recreational cannabis. Located in Talent, Oregon, it is owned and managed by Jon, Adam Serean, and Samantha Dixon. As this is an area where jobs are scarce, our goal has always been to be a self-sufficient, sustainable farming business that hires local workers to process our product. To that end, we had purchased more land earlier this summer to accommodate our growing business (pun intended). We will not see any revenue from our lost crop, and we will have to wait and see what effect the smoke had on the 60% of our crop that remains. Most critically, the barn remodel, which was half-way complete as a controlled and secure onsite environment for collecting and drying the plants, was a complete loss. And, despite the time, materials, and hard work we had put into transforming the old barn, we had not yet obtained insurance for it.
Because our crop is cannabis, some relief available to other businesses affected by the fire is not likely to be available to us. Although cannabis is legal in Oregon and highly regulated by the Oregon Liquor Control Commission, the Federal government still considers it a controlled substance. For example, cannabis businesses were not eligible for the Small Business Administration (SBA) loans made available under the CARES Act when COVID-19 hit. And, when similar fires engulfed cannabis grows in northern California in late 2017, some 34 cannabis farms were destroyed in Mendocino County right at harvest time. Despite that state’s request for federal disaster relief funding, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) refused to provide funds for affected cannabis growers. So, we do not expect FEMA support for us in Oregon this year.
Despite these challenges, we would not be in this business if we were not optimists. We continue to count our blessing and believe in our farm, our industry, and our community. Our first priority is to build a new barn where we can control our production and hire locals, many of whom have lost everything in this fire. We are in talks with a manufacturer about discount options and we have identified the model we want. [See pictures below.]
But we need YOUR help – we are asking for your donations to, literally, raise our barn. Your donation will support Green American Farm’s barn rebuild, create jobs in our community, and come back together stronger than ever!
Please give what you can and share this request widely – every dollar helps.
Thank you and God bless.
(Included are some links below, but do not hesitate to contact me if you have questions. But, given our situation, please understand if it takes me a day or two to get back to you.)
https://www.oregon.gov/olcc/
https://thefreshtoast.com/cannabis/will-cannabusiness-get-bailed-out-from-losses-during-and-after-pandemic/?fbclid=IwAR2zLEuq0BwhUjeilgpAyLDjrxIu5199GoTReiDjNDUJe8f1OAVgVkpDKYU
https://mjbizdaily.com/california-wildfires-claim-several-marijuana-farms-threatening-growers-with-financial-losses/
Green American Farm is an Oregon certified and licensed farm for growing recreational cannabis. Located in Talent, Oregon, it is owned and managed by Jon, Adam Serean, and Samantha Dixon. As this is an area where jobs are scarce, our goal has always been to be a self-sufficient, sustainable farming business that hires local workers to process our product. To that end, we had purchased more land earlier this summer to accommodate our growing business (pun intended). We will not see any revenue from our lost crop, and we will have to wait and see what effect the smoke had on the 60% of our crop that remains. Most critically, the barn remodel, which was half-way complete as a controlled and secure onsite environment for collecting and drying the plants, was a complete loss. And, despite the time, materials, and hard work we had put into transforming the old barn, we had not yet obtained insurance for it.
Because our crop is cannabis, some relief available to other businesses affected by the fire is not likely to be available to us. Although cannabis is legal in Oregon and highly regulated by the Oregon Liquor Control Commission, the Federal government still considers it a controlled substance. For example, cannabis businesses were not eligible for the Small Business Administration (SBA) loans made available under the CARES Act when COVID-19 hit. And, when similar fires engulfed cannabis grows in northern California in late 2017, some 34 cannabis farms were destroyed in Mendocino County right at harvest time. Despite that state’s request for federal disaster relief funding, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) refused to provide funds for affected cannabis growers. So, we do not expect FEMA support for us in Oregon this year.
Despite these challenges, we would not be in this business if we were not optimists. We continue to count our blessing and believe in our farm, our industry, and our community. Our first priority is to build a new barn where we can control our production and hire locals, many of whom have lost everything in this fire. We are in talks with a manufacturer about discount options and we have identified the model we want. [See pictures below.]
But we need YOUR help – we are asking for your donations to, literally, raise our barn. Your donation will support Green American Farm’s barn rebuild, create jobs in our community, and come back together stronger than ever!
Please give what you can and share this request widely – every dollar helps.
Thank you and God bless.
(Included are some links below, but do not hesitate to contact me if you have questions. But, given our situation, please understand if it takes me a day or two to get back to you.)
https://www.oregon.gov/olcc/
https://thefreshtoast.com/cannabis/will-cannabusiness-get-bailed-out-from-losses-during-and-after-pandemic/?fbclid=IwAR2zLEuq0BwhUjeilgpAyLDjrxIu5199GoTReiDjNDUJe8f1OAVgVkpDKYU
https://mjbizdaily.com/california-wildfires-claim-several-marijuana-farms-threatening-growers-with-financial-losses/
Organizer
Jon Erskine
Organizer
Talent, OR
