On a 14-acre historic farm in Ferguson, MO, EarthDance shares the craft and science of organic farming with people from all walks of life. As the oldest organic farm west of the Mississippi, EarthDance has carried on the farm’s legacy in the time since its previous owners passed. They’ve also added an educational and communal element to the farm. The teaching farm provides a model of sustainable food production, cultivating food leaders alongside abundant fresh produce through their organic farm school programs.

EarthDance’s mission is to both help provide organic produce grown on the farm to underserved communities and teach community members how to grow their own organic produce. They offer beginner farmer and gardener training, summer jobs for Ferguson teenagers, and tours and volunteer opportunities for groups ranging from university students to corporate groups and Girl Scouts.

The farm sells and donates its produce, primarily through the Ferguson farmer’s market and local food pantries and related organizations. They focus most of their food distribution efforts in the Ferguson area the farm calls home, but serve other outlets elsewhere in the north county area. In July, the farm is opening a pay-what-you-can farm stand to continue its efforts to provide healthy, organic produce options to community members who so often can’t afford them.

As a Dana Brown grant recipient, the farm has been able to expand and plan for even more youth services. Grant funds from the Dana Brown Charitable Trust have helped contribute to costs related to EarthDance’s new Farm to School planning process. This planning process involves meeting with representatives from the school district to help develop different Farm to School programs, including agro-culinary internships for students and teacher development to help educators better utilize school gardens. EarthDance also hopes to be able to serve more of the school district’s cafeterias by allowing them to offer more organic produce to students.

Dana Brown is proud to partner with an organization so dedicated to improving not only the lives of local students and families, but the St. Louis community as a whole. If you’d like to learn more about EarthDance, you can visit their website for ways to get involved as a volunteer or patron. For inquiries about partnership development, you can contact Rachel Levi directly through email.