Your Donations in Action!

      Posted On: December 4, 2017

Farmer Liz Whitehurst (left) visits Senator Cardin’s office with FMC Board Member, Christie Balch

We here at FMC are thankful for your generosity!

Thanks to your donations, we were able to kick off the Farmer Fly-In Project last month, by sending Liz Whitehurst, owner of Owl’s Nest Farm, to speak with lawmakers on Capitol Hill. Liz, a Maryland farmer (who was also recently featured in a Washington Post article about young farmers), was accompanied by FMC board member Christie Balch for visits to Maryland Senators Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen’s offices. Senator Van Hollen serves on the Senate Agriculture Committee, making him a key legislator in the Farm Bill.

The 2018 Farm Bill will have a major impact on local food. Your support made it possible for Liz to speak about the importance of farmers markets for her business, and helped Christie elevate important federal programs like FMPP, Senior FMNP, FINI and SNAP, and specific policy proposals that FMC supports such as the Local FARMS Bill and the Urban Agriculture Production act.

“FMC made it easy to visit with my legislators,” says Liz. “With their support, the visits went smoothly, and it felt good to know I was advocating for my farm and farmers like me.”

The visits were a success, and Senator Van Hollen’s office asked to stay in touch with FMC as the Farm Bill process continues. But there’s still a lot of work to do.

How Can You Help?

In order to send more farmers like Liz to Capitol Hill, we need your support. We need to raise $6,500 by December 31st to pay for airfare, meals, and lodging for the other farmers and ranchers hoping to tell their stories. We’re currently only $2,000 away from our goal.

As the Farm Bill continues to take shape, you can help us make sure the priorities of America’s local farmers and ranchers are heard loud and clear. If you think local farmers and ranchers must be heard by lawmakers on Capitol Hill, help us send them to Washington D.C. by making a donation of any size today. Thank you!