October has definitely been a time of new beginnings here at Soul Food Farm. To start with, the air is fresh and cool and the mornings have a lovely mist hanging low on the ground.  The sun shines and encourages those new seeds and grasses to keep growing taller, new types of bugs have moved in, and the pastured chickens are feasting.  They’re also living in new chicken houses built by volunteers who came to Soul Food Farm to help out and HELP they did.

All in all it feels right again.

So, while we’ve been working and appreciating the change in the seasons and making new plans, the weeks have drifted by. We still have so much to say about the fundraiser at Pizzaiolo back on October 11. It was a marvelous Sunday and when Eric and I walked in and saw friends with their volunteer name tags, and piles of wine and pictures of the farm, we stood there staring with our mouths slightly open. And then in came people, lots and lots of people: friends, acquaintances, and people we didn’t know but talked to and found new friends we will keep in contact with.

I don’t know how Bonnie Powell and Samin Nosrat managed to organize such a successful day with all the other work they do. Is there nothing these two women can’t do? I think not!!! Have I mentioned the food yet — platters and platters of mouth-watering delicacies — and the Brazilian music drifting through the crowd to turn the fundraiser into a party? This was truly community in action.

Here is a slideshow of photos taken by Bart Nagel, Bonnie’s long-suffering photographer husband, who also took most of the photos on the Soul Food Farm website.

Thank you to all the people who cooked, who sent donations and auction items, and the folks who helped after the fire. It will never be forgotten and is now what inspires Soul Food Farm each morning. Thank you to everyone. With your help, Soul Food Farm is still standing, and we are ready to do a better job then ever before.

Here’s to smooth sailing!