A healing farm

Sara Creech started farming to heal herself. As she tells her story on her website, “After serving in the military as a surgical nurse during Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom, and later losing my husband to cancer, I was left feeling like my life was over. It seemed that there were no more beautiful colors, no more joyful sounds and no more hope for the future.” Getting her hands in the soil helped her connect with a sense of new life.

She and her husband, Chuck, an Air Force pilot, had dreamed of starting an organic farm once he was out of the military. After Chuck died at the age of 36, Sara decided to go for it on her own, although the idea seemed “way out there.” In 2012 she started Blue Yonder Farm outside of Indianapolis, Indiana. Today the farm is home to pastured sheep, chickens and turkeys, and it produces over 50 kinds of fruits, vegetables, herbs and mushrooms.

The farm is also a place where veterans come to heal and connect. Sara started a veterans’ outreach program on the farm called Operation Groundwork. Every month, the farm hosts a picnic for post 9/11 veterans and their families. The farm also offers a one-week training program twice a year for veterans interested in starting a farm business and it welcomes veterans as incubator farmers. American Farmland Trust shared Sara’s story on its blog.

Rose Jenkins is a frequent contributor to Saving Land, the Alliance's quarterly magazine.