F E A T U R E

Behind the Farm

to Family Bus

by Leah Small

I

magine a farmers’ market on wheels and you’ll picture Farm to Family, operated from a renovated 1984 school bus stocked with homemade and homegrown goods, founded to give more consumers access to fresh, organic products, and to give more local farmers a fair market. Patrons purchase

memberships to receive a weekly supply of goods, as in a traditional CSA (community supported agriculture). With a traveling bus, more people have access to the service, which includes families in lower income areas, accepts food stamps, and doesn’t require membership for purchase. Mark Lilly conceived and manages the business, but acknowledges that he

has received much support from his wife, Suzi, and from the ethic imparted to him by his mother and grandmother. As Abigail Adams said, “Remember the ladies.” Suzi’s first opportunity to encourage her husband in his new endeavor came

after the bus had been sitting in their yard for two months. “We couldn’t just have it in the yard to visit,” she says jokingly, and she urged him to renovate it. Who says a woman’s kind encouragement has to be mistaken for nagging? Mark’s upbringing makes him a natural for this innovative idea that has helped

so many. The family practiced self sufficiency by growing their vegetables and keeping chickens. His grandmother lived the same way. “It trickles down,” says his mother, Pat Swinson. Suzi shares a similar upbringing. She grew up on a farm in New York and

has a close relationship with the earth. According to Suzi, knowing the person who grows our food is the closest to it we can be, besides growing it ourselves. “We want [our customers] to know who raises their chickens. We want them to know the lady that bakes their bread,” she says. Mark’s mother and Suzi share his opinions on the support of small farmers

and self sufficiency. “It is more important today than it was before because of the economy,” Pat says. Suzi laments, “Our lifestyle is so fast now, people don’t know how to cook

anymore.” Education is Mark’s and Suzi’s solution to the problem. There are many

who do not know how to cook the vegetables that they have gotten with their memberships. Suzi and Mark are quick to provide tasty suggestions, such as a salad of fresh kale, olive oil, ginger, and a splash of vinegar and lemon. People have expanded their pantries, and their abilities. Suzi attributes much of this to the obligations that come from being in a CSA. “When you join a CSA it’s a commitment. You’ve got the stuff so you’ve got to learn how to cook with it.” Suzi has a zeal for childhood nutrition. Many of the children that come onto

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APRIL 2010 • Vmagazine for women

www.farmtofamilyonline.com

the bus do not know the names of the vegetables, which bothers her. Okay, at age five, who knows what arugula or kale is anyway? However, it is not the uncommon that stumps them, it is the basic. There are children who, before stepping on the bus, could not identify staples such as corn, tomatoes, and potatoes. Suzi and Pat showed their enthusiasm for the mission by playfully quizzing me. I did not recognize kale and collards. Scary! Mark Lilly is a dreamer. “It’s slowly happening,” is how he describes his

mission to educate the community. Outside of the bus, Mark displays a picture of his grandmother. She is a woman whose lifestyle influenced his mission. We must remember that the men behind the greatest ideas are often not solo innovators. V

V intern Leah Small is now far more mindful about what she consumes, and how it affects those around her. She would rather buy from her neighbor than an anonymous corporation. It is amazing how one group of people can change so much. She encourages Mark and Suzi to keep up the great work!

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