With strawberries and goats, a ‘farmastery’ reaches out to its neighbors

[mwai_chat context=”Let’s have a discussion about this article:nnHILLSBOROUGH, N.C. (RNS) — On a warm, sunny morning in farm country, a group of 40 preschoolers and their parents fanned out across several rows of crops to pluck strawberries from beneath crowns of green leaves.Later, the children sliced the berries they had gathered and added bananas, kale and yogurt to blend into smoothies before heading out to feed chickens and goats. They then strolled through a wooded trail (spotted a turtle!) and took turns at a pair of swings hanging from a tree. The morning concluded with an outdoor lunch prepared by a dietitian and chef.
The outing Wednesday morning (May 29) was part of a wellness program called Grow It, one of several offered to young families living in North Carolina’s Triangle region by Spring Forest, a farm and new monastic community, or “farmastery.”
The 23-acre farm is located amid lush green meadows and stands of pine about 5 miles north of Hillsborough, a historic town best known as a haven for artists and writers. In 2016, Elaine Heath, an ordained United Methodist and a former dean of the Duke Divinity School, settled down here with her husband, Randall Bell, and launched a small community known as the Church at Spring Forest.
Elaine Heath. (Courtesy photo)
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