Our Team
Frances
Fran bought the farm in 2014 and spends as much time as she can assisting the team to regenerate the soil and beautify the land. More flowers are being planted this year for guests and bees to enjoy.
Marc
Marc gardened as a child and was inspired by his friend’s family’s small farms. After college, in 2007, Marc thought he would farm for 2 weeks while he looked for other work, and to his own surprise, farming has been his profession since. He was inspired by the need to slow erosion and to keep our water clean. The connections of agriculture to community and to the environment surprised and fascinated him, to an extent that was probably too much. Before joining Flatwater Farms, Marc started and ran a CSA with his wife Claire in Cincinnati. They produced turkeys, eggs, chickens, beef, pork, 5 acres of vegetables and fruits, flowers, and herbs. When that leased land was developed for housing, they faced the tough choice on whether to start over from scratch. They chose to move to California instead, where Marc got a job managing a ranch that produced grain, beef, lamb, turkeys, pork, and more.
Andrew
Andrew was born and raised in Baltimore MD. This is where his first interaction with farming came from. His mother would have a small vegetable garden each summer. This taught the basics of growing food to serve on the table to him and his 6 siblings. Flatwater Farms is the first large-scale organic farm that Andrew has worked on. He is eager to learn as much as possible. Before starting at Flatwater Farms, Andrew was in his 3rd year at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University pursuing a Homeland Security degree and a part of the Men’s Rowing Team.
Ann
Annie has been photographing life on the farm and tending to the bees. She lends a hand with the hop harvest and is dreaming about highland cows.
Claire
Claire serves on the board and executive committee of Chicago’s Green City Market, an organization committed to sustainable and local farming practices in the Midwest. She is also interim CFO for Of The Earth Group Inc., a multi-faceted organic hemp operation based in Oregon and China. She grew up in New Orleans and served at Habitat for Humanity when hurricane Katrina devastated the area. Claire provides sage advice and skilled free labor to FWF, particularly during hop harvests!
Tyler
Tyler has planted hundreds of trees on the farm, including our apple and pear orchard, as well as harvested trees for milling that are used in the brewery.
Claire
Claire is a former organic vegetable farmer. While she still gets her hands in the dirt every now and then, she has decided to take a step back from production and focus more on marketing. Finding beauty in the world around her has always been a priority, and she found experiencing the rhythm of the natural world very inspiring. Now she gets to share the beauty of the farm by making connections and bringing people to the farm.
Josh
Josh pitches in with design and sustainability while working closely with the farm’s partner, River St. Joe, to keep our wagons hitched.