FREELAND, Md. — Rick Bernstein started growing food for people in need some 25 years ago, when he would give excess produce from his family's garden to his church.
That garden slowly grew, until it got a bit too big for the church.
"And it grew to eight acres and our pastor said gosh this is incredible. Its too big for the church, it should be a separate non-profit," Bernstein said.
That non-profit became First Fruits Farm, now located on a 203-acre property in Freeland. On any given day, volunteers and staff are moving tens of thousands of pound of fresh food, that will all be donated to local organizations.
And while the work is happening in the fields and greenhouses to grow the produce, work is also being done to expand the farm's barn that houses its distribution operations.
"It will be more expeditious. For our volunteers to work, it will be safer," said Wesley Krock, the chief operating officer at First Fruits. "We have loading docks on the end, eight loading positions for large trailers."
Krock said the hope is that with a bigger area to store, package and ship out food, they can decrease the time between harvest and delivery.
"We’re going to provide a healthier product. Its going to arrive faster, quicker," he said.
The demand for their produce has grown more quickly than a vine of tomatoes. Before the COVID pandemic, Bernstein said they worked with about three dozen non-profit partners. That number is now above 130.
Krock said the expanded barn will allow them to become a year-round operation, thus increasing their food production while also being able to accommodate more volunteers.
"We have a vision and God has placed us in that path before us that this operation will hopefully meet the needs of a 12-month ministry and try to battle the food insecurities in the area," he said.
The pandemic, like for so many organizations, was a turning point for First Fruits. Its staff and volunteers have risen to the challenge, leaning on their faith to guide them through this journey.
"The pandemic lead us to a way that we thought would never work. All of a sudden, low and behold, we’re doing something different and we’re doing something different in a better way," said Krock.
"Its reintroducing people to the fruits of the Earth and God gave us these incredible things to eat and we almost have to re-learn how to discover enjoying them," said Bernstein.
Because all of the food grown on the farm is given away for free, First Fruits relies on donations and volunteers to keep its operations going. For more information about how to become a volunteer, click here. To make a donation, click here.
