Thank you Voyage Ohio Magazine for featuring the farm in the “Trailblazers” section. Read the interview below or visit Voyage Ohio.
“Today we’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Jacobs.
Hi Jennifer, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers.
My farm was built in 1859, and my family moved here in 1919 – over 100 years ago! My great-grandparents and grandparents were Hungarian immigrants who farmed here just like they did in the Old Country. I have been living in the farmhouse since 1998, and I have been restoring the farm, turning it slowly back into a working farm again. In March, I had a little baby boy named Frankie, the fifth generation of my family to live on the farm.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Life has its challenges, and farming absolutely has obstacles. Farming is a lot of work, and it can have its hardships. With farming, you are raising plants and animals, and you are essentially creating life. Life can be uncertain.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I call my farm a heritage farm because I tend to raise heritage Old World livestock. I raise Jacob sheep, mangalitsa pigs, geese, quail, pigeons, goats, and honeybees. The old breeds are hardy and beautiful. I farm with a nod to my family’s heritage as well, incorporating the old farm ways and my Hungarian background. I have a self-serve farmstand that is quickly growing and is stocked with eggs, soap, honey, herbs, preserves, plants, produce, and more.
What matters most to you? Why?
Preserving the farmland and heritage farming matters to me. Many old farms are being lost to development, and many of the farm traditions are being lost.”