<div>Hi, I'm Marissa Paykos, the owner and operator of Whippoorwill Farms SC in Ridgeland, SC. While I usually am not the one asking for help, more accustomed to the one trying to give and support instead, myself and my farm are in desperate need of your support right now.
</div>
<div><br />
</div><img alt="" media_type="3" src="https://d2g8igdw686xgo.cloudfront.net/83082087_1727589067525601_r." width="100%" />
<div><br />
</div>
<div>On September 21st, 2024 I suffered a devastating freak fall that has left me facing a long, painful road to recovery and walking again.
</div>
<div><br />
</div><img alt="" media_type="3" src="https://d2g8igdw686xgo.cloudfront.net/83082087_1727588889542656_r." width="100%" />
<div><br />
</div>
<div>But first let me tell you a bit about myself, my family and my life’s work at Whippoorwill Farms.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Myself and my loving husband James run a commercial regenerative farm in the Lowcountry of South Carolina. Together with my daughter, Ellie, and a dedicated team we have built a business that is as much about giving back as it is about sustainability. In Jasper County—one of the most economically challenged areas of the state—our "Pay What You Can" Produce Stand has become a beacon of hope. Anyone in need can come to the farm, pick up fresh produce, eggs, and meat at the stand when it is stocked and pay whatever they are able, even if that’s nothing at all. Whenever there is abundance on the farm, there is abundance available for the community.
</div>
<div><br />
</div><img alt="" media_type="3" src="https://d2g8igdw686xgo.cloudfront.net/83082087_1727588853622085_r." width="100%" />
<div><br />
</div>
<div>The farm makes their living and pays their employees by attending multiple weekly farmers markets, running a very large subscription program, selling to many local chefs weekly and even has a campground on our farm for people to see first hand just what we do.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Beyond my local community, I share the grit and reality of farming through my social media presence, "The Executive in Overalls." I’m not just educating people—I’m inspiring them. Every day, i pour my heart into my farm and my team, making sure my employees earn a livable wage, a principle I refuse to compromise on. And making sure that everything we do, each choice we makes builds towards a better more sustainable future.
</div>
<div><br />
</div><img alt="" media_type="3" src="https://d2g8igdw686xgo.cloudfront.net/83082087_1727589009323115_r." width="100%" />
<div><br />
</div>
<div>My husband and I share a love story built on hard work, family, and unwavering faith in each other. Our joy grew even more recently when, after trying for over eight long years, we learned we were expecting our second child.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Then, tragedy struck. On Saturday, September 21st, at 17 weeks pregnant, I had a freak accident, falling in the farm's fields. To protect my unborn baby, I braced myself with my legs, but the impact caused a severe compound fracture in my ankle, leaving my foot barely attached. Alone and terrified, I feared I might never walk again and—worse—lose the child we had longed for.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Through sheer courage, I managed to find my phone and call 911. I used my clothing to apply a makeshift tourniquet to slow the bleeding on my ankle as I pleaded to the 911 dispatcher to please hurry, I was losing so much blood. My foot was completely unattached to my leg, dangling on by just a few tendons and skin. I laid back alone in the dirt and knew I had to stay conscious and calm to keep the baby safe. I also knew the team was coming back to the field soon and they would find me. But I just had to hang on. After about 10 minutes, a team member found me and applied another tourniquet from the shirt off her own back. James was inside sleeping after working nights and another employee rushed to wake him. He arrived on the scene with his belt removed to applied yet another tourniquet to my leg.
</div>
<div><br />
</div><img alt="" media_type="3" src="https://d2g8igdw686xgo.cloudfront.net/83082087_1727589126120655_r." width="100%" />
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Because Whippoorwill Farms is in such a remote area, it took nearly 30 agonizing minutes for EMS to arrive.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Since then, I have undergone 5 surgeries to reconstruct my leg. Unfortunately, despite the surgeons and infectious disease doctors best efforts, I still contracted osteomyelitis in my foot and for the last 5 months, have been on both drip IV antibiotics and oral antibiotics. At the time of the accident, the wound was fully exposed and covered in dirt and grass in a high traffic livestock area. I am also missing a large piece of bone from my ankle that will need to be added from a cadaver sometime after the infection is under control. The doctors are also now talking about the architecture of the joint being damaged now as well.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>The days and months ahead will be challenging. It's been almost 5 months since my accident, and I have been non weight bearing unless my foot is wrapped with my walking boot on. Even with those precautions though, I am still unable to bear full weight and I use the help of mobility devices.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>The baby, through all of this, from what we can tell, with complication after complication has been healthy and strong. We're looking forward to welcoming them to the family at the end of February.
</div>
<div><br />
</div><img alt="" media_type="3" src="https://d2g8igdw686xgo.cloudfront.net/83082087_1727589182505490_r." width="100%" />
<div><br />
</div>
<div>My injury has not only affected myself but ripples through my farm, my team, and my community I serve. With 2 horrible storm hits this fall and fall crops struggling to rebound, Whippoorwill Farms was teetering on the edge of a financial crisis. But because of all of the donations we received up to this point, we have been able to build back our destroyed gardens, pay additional staff that took my place on the farm, help cover some of my income I wasn't making from the farm because of not working, allow my husband to stay home to take care of me and our daughter for almost 3 months unpaid from his off farm job AND pay for my medical bills up to this point.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>We truly had thought though, that after 3 months, all of this would be over. I was told so many times, I'd be walking and carrying my newborn. But now we know that's not the reality. I have many more surgeries ahead and so much more recovery to face and even amputation has been discussed on multiple occasions.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Our family, for the last 10 years has been living in an RV. We chose this lifestyle so we could pour into our farm and build our business. It worked for us and I have been determined to continue to make it work. But over the last 5 months, I have learned just how handicap inaccessible the space truly is. My husband replaced the shower to help me be able to actually fit a shower chair in the shower and we have made every accommodation possible to help me get around in the RV. But unfortunately, I can barely fit through the doorways with my walker and once I take my boot off for the evening, because I cannot fit inside with my wheelchair, I am unable to join the family in the kitchen to cook meals or even join them at our very tiny dining table. I haven't been able to get up to tuck my daughter in her room since the accident and my general participation with my family's day to day life has been so incredibly limited because of my lack of ability to use mobility devices in the RV.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>With the baby just weeks away from arriving and more surgeries on the horizon, my husband decided that I needed to be able to get around in our home with my wheelchair. He's watched me struggle for months and months and although I was determined to push through, he's right, it's just not practical anymore. A couple of weeks ago, we went to look at mobile homes. We'll be able to move our RV from where it is, and set up a mobile home in it's place.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>We looked at a ton of different models and options. But most importantly, I took my wheelchair to make sure I could fit through doorways with it. When we finally found a model that was handicap accessible, I started crying when I wheeled myself through the bedrooms and to the bathroom. I finally saw what my husband saw, just how much more independent I could be and how much more I could help our family and my daughter and new baby if I had that option.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>We have poured everything into our business over the past almost 7 years. Any time we had extra money, we invested it in our business, in our employees and in our community. We didn't budget this new expense in but we know it is so very needed.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Anything you would be willing to contribute to help us continue to run our farm business, impact our community AND help me recover in a more handicap accessible space so that I can continue to do the very important work I love, it would be so greatly appreciated.
</div>
<div><br />
</div><img alt="" media_type="3" src="https://d2g8igdw686xgo.cloudfront.net/83082087_1727589282243699_r." width="100%" />
<div><br />
</div>
<div>James and myself built Whippoorwill Farms from the ground up, transforming it from a patch of woodland into a thriving, vital part of the community. Now, we need you to rally behind us.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your generosity and compassion. With your help, I can recover stronger than before and be able to be present in my family's life.  Maybe I'll even be back in the fields, working alongside of my team, like I dream of doing each and every day. Together, we can keep this farm thriving in a community that needs what we do here, so very much.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>learn more about what we do at <a href="https://Lowcountryfarmtotable.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><a href="https://Lowcountryfarmtotable.com" target="_blank" class="" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">https://Lowcountryfarmtotable.com</a></a>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><a href="https://Facebook.com/wwfsc" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><a href="https://Facebook.com/wwfsc" target="_blank" class="" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">https://Facebook.com/wwfsc</a></a>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><a href="https://Instagram.com/theexecutiveinoveralls" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><a href="https://Instagram.com/theexecutiveinoveralls" target="_blank" class="" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">https://Instagram.com/theexecutiveinoveralls</a></a>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><a href="https://YouTube.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><a href="https://YouTube.com/" target="_blank" class="" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">https://YouTube.com/</a></a>@theexecutiveinoveralls
</div>

Laura Aronson

Sarah Levine

Richard Johnson

Cathleen Fracasse

Anonymous

Dawn Schutt

Lisa Smitherman

Kimberly Haber

Timothy Carney

Karen Fawcett

Celine Runyon

Robin Byerly

Joni Roy

Karen Woodling

Support Whippoorwill Farms and Marissa’s Journey to Recovery

platform

Platform is iOS

Android

Adyen Google Pay Development Audience

$opt_dummy_attribute

English only

Deprecate Stripe Legacy

dyn_template_ids

Adyen V6 Bene Transfer & MyMoney Campaign Organizers - test01

Bene transfer V6 and AdyenV6MyMoney Campaign Organizers - production

OneTrust next-app audience

fundCountryCode

NextDoor Share Option Users

Fundraisers with Reactions feature capability

fundCurrencyCode

US + Non-charity COs Only

locale

fund country is US and user language is English

personId

comms-internal-person-ids

Enhanced Story Experience Users

Suggested Goal Experience Users

user language is English and fund country: US, AU, DK, FI, IE, NO, SE, CA, GB; 

Poster share - new funds eligible (newest 9/18)

Streaming widgets beta user

paymentProcessor

3DS payment method

user language is English and fundCountry: US, AU, DK, FI, IE, NO, SE, CA, GB; 

GoFundMe Employees

ipAddress

Mark Rieth IP Address

Version 9.2.0 and above

Fund is in English speaking country

desktop

Android v12.11.0 and above

Platform is Android

paymentMethodType

checkoutType

Payment method type group to be vaulted on success

admin pr kit prod

EUR Donation Upsell

Share Text generation Skip Fundraiser

(prod) new funds eligible for amp12 (UGC gallery)

fintrac_cad_idv_form_v2 audience

paymentProcessorAccountId

fallback mode accounts

proCampaignId

p2p legacy startfundraising page

AMP24 New Funds Only PROD (DO NOT MODIFY)

countryCode

charityId

UKCharities

Federated Search Internal Testing

route.pathname community

US Donation Upsell audience 

Auto Thanks Feature Audience

Supporter Comments Eligible Funds

International Only

fundId

braze fundraiser group 

Payment Identity Transfers ATO Risk Check (Targeted) - Production

Fundraiser Saved Payment Method Rate Limit Bypass (Production)

leaderboard-partner-id-audience-givepanel

Version 9.2.1 and above

AUD Donation Upsell audience

fundraiserCountryCode is US/EN

Active Fundraiser - Smart Default Cadence

DAF Internal

Vault on success card payment method

Platform is iOS v11.0.0 and above

Desktop users

Person ids

United States (US) users

allow yuno fundraisers for test

Mexico country code

Posters INTL

NPO Profile Opted-In

iOS at or above 12.4.0

non-US recurring donors

Canada Campaign Owner Group

Fundraiser Without Meta Link

Scheduler payment tester gorup

charityCommunityId

Charities allow to be claimed unclaimed (PRD)

Canada (CA) users

currencyCode

UC Tipping v20250115 International

pymk_production_xplr_fe_team

Android at or above 12.2.0

Profile photo entry point audience

smart goals (fundraiser/manage) on test01

Activity Tracking v1 Beta Testing

writePath

Stream Notification

start gfm intl allowed locales

Platform is iOS v11.2.0 and above

unclaimed charities

prod_ach_audience

AI Chatbot Audience

amp13 only new funds (prod) (anyword auto)

UC Flow Enabled (Prod)

Payment Identity Beneficiary Verification - Production

shared notification bell audience

Custom users

ach frontend audience

Android v11.0.0 and above

Users Receiving Payments Paused Notifications

smart goals test01

Manage Coach - US English Organizers Only + new funds only

Team EGG - IP Address list

Fundraiser Without Instagram Deep Link

Native 11.4.0 and above

UC Tipping v20250107

Users Receiving Braze KYC Validation Failed

Native 11.3.0 and above

Influencer - Prod

US fundraisers and US users

ai_title_page

anyword

openai

control

manual_entry

userEmail

template_id

userId

fundUrl

isCharityCo

email

appVersion

shouldBucketIntoExperiment

partnerId

donationCadence

isActiveFundraiser

isPartner

isMobile

npoProfileOptIn

fundIsLinkedWithMeta

hasSessionDonation

isCampaignOwner

fundHasInstagramDeepLink

Native 11.4.0 and higher

New funds eligible - Video Sharing (PROD)

GB Donation Upsell audience 

Auto Thanks V3 Rollout Audience

Thank you V3 testing whitelist

isRecurringFriendly

Is Recurring Friendly

Excluded funds - Video Sharing

Logged In Users

CH Donation Upsell audience

Android v10.6.0 and above

userCurrencyCode

Localized Currency

v11.5.0 and above

testAudience

pathname

Survicate

appVersion is at or above 12.8.0

Non-charity fund

isChallengeFundraiser

challenge-fundraisers

Payment Identity Launch Verification - Production

New funds eligible - Posters v2

CAD Donation Upsell Audience

Braze Email Tester

NPO Profile Opted-Out

iOS App Version

hasKnownDonors

PYMK has donors

iOS v12.3.0 and above

Support Whippoorwill Farms and Marissa’s Journey to Recovery

Still $16,166 to go. Help us build momentum.