Warren Facey’s grandfather was raised on a farm on Barton Road in Greenfield. Growing up nearby, Warren watched his grandfather farm the land. In 1949, his great uncle sold that land, and Warren watched as houses were built all over it. “That,” he says, “is how I became a conservationist.”

As a young man Warren worked in construction, but found himself drawn to land and livestock. He bought a couple of cows to milk, then in 1972 he and his wife Sandie bought a small farm in Leyden. When he was laid off the following year, Warren “bought a bunch of heifers and built a milk house.” Within a few months, dairy farming became his full time occupation.

From the beginning, Warren was an activist farmer. He was always interested in the big picture and willing to invest time and energy to improve profitability and quality of life for farmers. Warren and Sandie were early members of CISA’s Dairy Action Group, which provided training, networking, and planning opportunities.

In 1998 members of this group created the Our Family Farms marketing cooperative and began selling milk directly to Pioneer Valley residents. The new business had no money to advertise so the farmers focused on marketing they could do themselves, such as giving away free samples and giving consumers a chance to meet their cows. They promoted two key attributes of their product: the milk came from local farms and the cows were not treated with the hormone rBGH.

The launch of Our Family Farms came at a critical time in CISA’s early development. Consumers responded enthusiastically to the local branding of milk, helping demonstrate to CISA and its partners and funders that a ‘buy local’ campaign would be well received in the Valley.

These days, Bree-Z-Knoll Farm milks 170 cows twice a day. Warren’s son Randy and his wife Angie run the farm, with help from the third generation. The farm has preserved much of its 350 acres for agricultural use, most recently as part of a large land protection deal supported by the state’s new Landscape Partnership Program and two of the land trusts also winning Local Hero awards this year. Warren recently retired from 19 years of service to CISA on the board and earlier governing committees.

If you call Warren at home and no one is there to answer, you’ll hear his friendly voice say: “Hi, you’ve reached Bree-Z-Knoll Farm where we’re outstanding in our field.” We at CISA wholeheartedly agree, and we’re proud to honor Warren Facey as a Local Hero.

The blackboard that greets customers upon arrival at Hope & Olive in Greenfield could almost be used as a guide to Franklin County farms and food businesses that use local ingredients. During the winter months, the list includes about 25 local farms and other suppliers; in summer it is much longer. This public statement of the local sources of Hope & Olive’s ingredients is no coincidence, for local food is at the very heart of this restaurant owned and operated by siblings Maggie and Jim Zaccara and their friend and partner Evelyn Wulfkuhle. They also jointly operate Magpie Woodfired Pizzeria around the corner.

Maggie and Jim attribute their success as restaurateurs to their enthusiastic dedication to local sourcing as well as the “infinite knowledge” imparted by their parents, who owned and ran several eating establishments. Forty years ago, when Maggie was five and Jim two, their parents opened Chuck’s Steakhouse in Danbury, Connecticut. As soon as they were old enough, each of the ten Zaccara children were employed in the family business. Maggie and Jim first teamed up with Evelyn, whose background was in bread baking, at A Bottle of Bread, a small restaurant they opened in Shelburne that gained a reputation for excellence throughout the Valley and was widely mourned when it was lost to fire in 2005.

By moving to Greenfield to open Hope & Olive in 2007, the partners were able to expand their commitment to feeding their friends and neighbors with fresh local food. They play a leading role in the Free Harvest Supper, a huge meal for 1,000 served on the Greenfield Common each August, by opening Hope & Olive’s kitchen and heading up the preparation of food that local farms and restaurants donate for the event. Throughout the year, Hope & Olive hosts monthly Free Soup & Game Nights where guests enjoy a free buffet of soup and bread and are invited to support a designated non-profit.

Jim notes that nutritious local food and the local economy have been CISA’s mantra for twenty years now, and “people in our area have gotten the message.” At Hope & Olive, the local choice seems obvious. The ingredients that have traveled the shortest distance are the freshest. Our area has an abundant variety of small farms. The farmers who grow the food are friends and customers. Hope & Olive can partner with farms to grow crops for specific dishes. The restaurant’s website states, “We have worked to create a place that wholesomely nourishes our employees and the surrounding community.” Congratulations, Hope & Olive, on your resounding success! CISA is proud to honor you as a Local Hero.

Harry Dodson and Steve Judge founded Franklin Land Trust (FLT) in 1986 when they recognized that the farmland and landscape that define Franklin County were seriously threatened. Facing severe economic challenges, small family farms were rapidly selling off land. Housing developments endangered not only the beautiful rural scenery, but also the local agricultural economy.

At the time new land trusts were forming all over the country. Most were focused on conserving open space. For Dodson, a landscape architect, and Judge, a building inspector, preserving farms and farmland was top priority from day one. Since the beginning, farmers with a personal commitment to FLT’s success have served on the board of the organization. During the past 26 years, FLT has completed 163 farm preservation projects, protecting more than 12,000 acres of agricultural land. Altogether, the organization has helped conserve more than 26,000 acres.

Hillside in spring at Apex Orchards, a Local Hero member whose land Franklin Land Trust helped protect in 2000 (FLT photo)

Executive Director Rich Hubbard, who joined FLT in 2004, was the western Massachusetts field representative for the MA Department of Agricultural Resources’ Agricultural Preservation Restriction (APR) Program; he joined the program in 1987 and became its manager in 1988. Subsequently, Hubbard served as Massachusetts’ Assistant Commissioner of Agriculture. Hubbard says that he used to worry about the future of farming in some parts of the state, but he never worried about the health of farms in the Valley because of the plentiful prime soil here and the local agricultural economy’s deep roots.

No land trust in Massachusetts has conserved more farms through APRs than FLT. The APR Program offers farmers a non-development alternative by paying the difference between the fair market value and the agricultural value of their land in exchange for a permanent deed restriction on the property. As a result, neither the present owner nor any future owner may use the land for any purpose that negatively impacts its agricultural viability. FLT has protected farms of many types and sizes using  APRs.

In addition to delicious fruit of many kinds, Apex offers one of the most spectacular views in Franklin County (FLT photo)

Apex Orchards, a Local Hero farm in Shelburne, was protected with FLT’s help in 2000. The 180-acre farm has been in Tim Smith’s family since 1828. Prior to the late 1990s, the farm was primarily a wholesale apple orchard that raised fruit for sale in the US and Europe. Smith used the APR funds to invest in the farm’s future, increasing profitability by transitioning from a wholesale to a retail business and diversifying his crops. Apex now sells farm-grown apples, peaches, nectarines, apricots, pears, and other fruit at its own retail store and at stores and farmers’ markets throughout the area. Preservation of this property also protected one of Franklin County’s most spectacular views from the Apex orchard.

In recent years, FLT has become known beyond Massachusetts for its signature annual event, the Deerfield Dirt-Road Randonee, or D2R2. After beginning as an informal bike ride along dirt roads through small towns in Franklin County, the D2R2 became an organized event in 2005. Riders choose from 180K, 150K, 115K, 100K, and 40 mile routes that, according to FLT’s website, traverse the “narrowest, oldest, twistiest, quietest, and most scenic roads available.” D2R2 is limited to 1,000 riders, many of whom are competitive cyclists who travel great distances to participate in the event as part of their training. The event sells out every year, raising a significant part of the land trust’s annual budget. With its celebratory atmosphere and great food, the event has gained a reputation for being one of the hardest, most beautiful, and most fun rides available.

In Franklin County the race against development pressure continues as FLT works to help landowners protect as much land as possible while opportunities still exist. Fortunately, FLT has created a community of people who are passionate about preserving the essence of Franklin County – its farmland, agricultural heritage, and rural identity. The FLT website states: “We celebrate the landscape, the history, and the rural culture of western Massachusetts, and work to ensure, through a program of land protection, that the historic pattern of field, woodland and village will endure for the benefit of generations to come.” For more information, visit franklinlandtrust.org.

Conserving ecologically important wildlands, economically and culturally important working lands, and the scenic beauty and culture of rural towns in western Massachusetts has been the focus of Hilltown Land Trust (HLT) since its founding in 1986. During its first 24 years as an all-volunteer organization, HLT protected almost 3,000 acres of working farmland and forest as well as other areas of ecological importance in Hampshire and Hampden Counties.

When HLT affiliated with The Trustees of Reservations in 2010, it maintained its independent identity but gained the backing of the much larger and older statewide organization. HLT and The Trustees, both of which rely on support from local members, donors, and volunteers, pooled their resources to hire staff and increase their conservation work in the hilltowns.

HLT now shares with The Trustees a professional land conservation staff person, Sally Loomis, who works for both organizations. The Trustees’ administrative support allows Loomis to focus on land conservation and stewardship efforts for HLT.

Agricultural preservation in the hilltowns differs from the efforts to preserve prime farmland in the Valley. HLT’s priority is to preserve working lands that may by used to grow crops or raise livestock, but are just as likely to be wooded areas that are managed for forestry purposes or for maple syrup production. Because of the lack of prime soil in the hilltowns, it is more difficult for land there to qualify for the state’s Agricultural Preservation Restriction program; most protected land in these communities has been conserved using a Conservation Restriction (CR).

Warner Farm in Cummington, conserved in 2010 with the assistance of Hilltown Land Trust (HLT photo)

The protection of Cummington’s Warner farm in 2010 was HLT’s most ambitious effort to date, providing wildlife protection and cold water stream conservation to 119 of the farm’s 131 acres. Directly opposite the Cummington Fairgrounds, the farm sits at the east end of Porter Hill Road. Captain Joseph Warner built the farmhouse in 1779 and the Warner family farmed there until 1965, when they donated the land to the United Church of Christ to use as a retreat.

When the current owners, Richard Fournier and his daughter, Sarah Fournier-Scanlon, purchased the property in 2009, they wanted to continue using the land for both agriculture and reflection. Rich, formerly pastor to both of Cummington’s Congregational churches, saw the potential for an educational and spiritual retreat center; Sarah, inspired by the famous Findhorn community in Scotland, wanted to create a sustainable farm.

A CISA Local Hero member, Taproot Commons Farm is thriving on land farmed by the Warner family for generations (Taproot Commons photo)

With HLT’s help, Rich and Sarah are both realizing their dreams. Local Hero member Taproot Commons Farm has built a state-inspected small-scale dairy, and now sells its own raw milk and free-range eggs, as well as local honey. The farm offers its facilities to groups seeking a rural space for gatherings such as strategy sessions, spiritual retreats, or weddings, with the caveat that the grounds are shared by “perpetually noisy ducks!” In addition, the public is welcome to enjoy bird-watching in the wetlands, or hike to a beautiful waterfall at the southern end of the property.

From HLT’s perspective, the Warner project is a good example of integrating wildlife protection with agricultural and historic preservation. The farm includes extensive wetlands that support rare or endangered wildlife and plants, and have been designated “Priority Habitat” by the Massachusetts Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program.

Visitors to the Warner Farm property can enjoy bird-watching in the wetlands and explore trails that lead to this beautiful waterfall (HLT photo)

Hilltown Land Trust serves the 13 towns of Ashfield, Chester, Chesterfield, Conway, Cummington, Goshen, Huntington, Middlefield, Plainfield, Westhampton, Williamsburg, Windsor and Worthington. To learn more about the land trust, its work, resources, and volunteer opportunities, visit hilltown-land-trust.org.

Kestrel Land Trust was founded in Amherst in 1970 as a volunteer organization known then as “The Kestrel Trust”. Kestrel worked closely with the town’s Conservation Commission during the ensuing decade, during which the majority of conservation land in Amherst was protected.

In the 1980s Kestrel expanded its conservation efforts into the nine towns surrounding Amherst. Kestrel frequently collaborated with Valley Land Fund, the Hadley-based land trust that worked in communities throughout Hampshire, Franklin, and Hampden Counties.

In 2011, several years after beginning a concerted effort to expand its capacity and become a professionally-staffed land trust, Kestrel merged with Valley Land Fund to become Kestrel Land Trust. The merger was designed to address challenges of land protection in the Valley in the 21st century and to accelerate the pace of land conservation in a context of rapid change and development in the region. Kestrel now aims to protect 1,000 acres each year, while building a comprehensive stewardship program that actively engages the community.

Expanding its efforts throughout a 19-town area, Kestrel’s mission is “to conserve the land that sustains the quality of life and ecological integrity of the Connecticut River Valley.” This includes a range of conservation priorities:

• Prime valley farmland

• The Connecticut River and its tributaries

• Woodlands, wildlands, and farmland in the Quabbin and Hilltown areas

• Scenic and wildlife habitat connecting to Mount Tom, the Mount Holyoke Range, and Mount Toby

Aerial view of the Great Meadow, Hadley (Pete Westover photo)

Given that Kestrel serves a region with great prime soils, farmland preservation is a top priority for the organization. Kestrel has engaged in a long-term effort, for example, to preserve Hadley’s Great Meadow, an area of 350 acres that has been farmed since the founding of Northampton more than 350 years ago. Parcel by parcel, Kestrel has worked over many years to preserve this valuable land along Cemetery Road between the Norwottuck Rail Trail and the Connecticut River. Currently, the land trust is helping to place an Agricultural Preservation Restriction on 14.5 acres of prime soil there. This will leave just 49 acres in the area of the Great Meadow most at risk from development still to be preserved for agriculture in perpetuity.

Another recent project illustrates not only the importance Kestrel places on farmland preservation, but also the integral relationship between protecting agricultural land and preserving wildlife habitat and water resources. Kestrel worked with the Town of Leverett and the Rattlesnake Gutter Trust in 2012 to conserve Teawaddle Hill Farm, a picturesque 147-acre parcel of open pastureland, woodland, sugarbush, wetlands, trails, and woods roads with a classic New England farmhouse and barn.

View of Brushy Mountain from Teawaddle Farm, Leverett (Gwyn Mitchell photo)

The Teawaddle property also has one of the best views of Brushy Mountain. The 3,486-acre Paul C. Jones Working Forest on Brushy Mountain was conserved with a CR in 2011 by the Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game in partnership with Kestrel Land Trust and Franklin Land Trust.

Teawaddle is the last remaining part of a larger 18th century farm complex in Leverett. The farm has been restored by Gwen Williams Mitchell, Bill Mitchell, and the Williams family since Gwen’s family purchased the farm in 1961. It now produces hay and maple syrup and raises cattle. The Conservation Restriction (CR) on Teawaddle Hill Farm preserves its historical significance as a working farm, and permits sustainable agriculture and forestry into the future.

In addition to conserving the farm and ensuring public access for passive recreation, protecting Teawaddle Hill Farm also strengthens an extensive wildlife corridor that extends from Leverett to North Amherst. And, the streams and wetlands on the property flow into Doolittle Brook in East Leverett, conserving critical water resources in this part of the Connecticut River Watershed.

Through its combined history with Valley Land Fund, Kestrel Land Trust has helped protect 19,000 acres of land, including many properties that are part of the iconic landscape for which the Valley is known. To learn more about Kestrel’s current projects, and for an interactive map of the properties Kestrel has helped preserve, visit kestreltrust.org.

Founded in 1986 in response to rapid unorganized development of productive farm and forestland in the region, Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust protects significant natural, agricultural, and scenic areas and encourages land stewardship in north central and western Massachusetts for the benefit of the environment, the economy, and future generations.

Mount Grace’s first success was saving the 365-acre Lawton Tree Farm in Athol, which was threatened with development into 200 house lots. The property is now the Lawton State Forest, where the public can explore trails through woods and wetlands owned by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation. Adjacent to Lawton is Skyfields, the farmhouse and forty acres of forest and fields bequeathed to the land trust in 1999 that now serves as its headquarters.

Since its founding, Mount Grace has protected 27,000 acres of land, about 3,000 of which are farmland. Executive director Leigh Youngblood points out that farmland preservation is especially important because of the high cost of agricultural land. Massachusetts farmland is among the most expensive in the country. Since the 1980s, the state has lost more than 18% of its agricultural land. Much of it has been sold for development, which drives up the cost of the remaining farmland and creates a major barrier for young farmers.

Red Fire Farm (Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust photo)

To address this challenge, Mount Grace recently launched the Campaign for Affordable Farms. The land trust is working with Red Fire Farm, a successful farm business and 1500-member CSA that lacked long-term secure tenure for much of the land they farmed in Granby. The farm’s owners, Ryan and Sarah Voiland, bought additional excellent farmland in Granby, but recognized that the purchase price would saddle the business with unsustainable debt.

In a creative partnership that builds on the work of Turners Falls-based Equity Trust and also involved the state’s APR program, Mount Grace will own the Montague land and the Voilands will own the farmhouse and other buildings. The land trust will grant an inheritable and renewable 99-year lease to the farmers and the resale price of the farm buildings will be restricted so that they are permanently affordable for the next farmer.

Strawberries at Red Fire Farm (Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust photo)

Referred to as “whole farm affordability,” this approach ensures that the farm has everything it needs – land, barns, greenhouses, and housing – at an affordable price. The land trust holds the land as a community resource, ensuring the production of fresh, local food on the land in perpetuity.

Another of Mount Grace’s recent undertakings is the Massachusetts Land Initiative for Tomorrow (MassLIFT) AmeriCorps program. Mount Grace initiated and manages this collaborative effort among regional conservation organizations that provides training to participants and additional person-hours for land trusts, thus increasing the pace of land and watershed protection across the Commonwealth. Currently sixteen organizations host twenty MassLIFT AmeriCorps volunteers through the program.

For more information including a map of conservation areas and information about protected farms, visit mountgrace.org.

Winter rye at Red Fire Farm ((Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust photo)

Pascommuck Conservation Trust was named for Easthampton’s earliest known settlement in the late 1600s. The Native American word “Pascommuck” means “where it bends,” a reference to the nearby oxbow of the Connecticut River.

Founded in 1982, Pascommuck’s mission is to protect important land and other natural resources in Easthampton for the public benefit. Pascommuck’s early priorities included establishing a greenbelt along the Manhan River. As the major tributary flowing through Easthampton to the Connecticut River, the Manhan continues to be a focus area for the organization. Preservation of Easthampton’s farmland has also been a priority, given the importance of local agriculture throughout the town’s long history.

Echodale Farm, Easthampton (Marty Klein photo)

Recently, Pascommuck helped protect Echodale Farm, a Local Hero farm and 165-acre property in the Park Hill area of Easthampton that is the largest farm in Easthampton and has gorgeous views of Mt. Tom. Formerly a dairy farm, Echodale is now part of a 400-acre block of agricultural and forestland preserved in perpetuity. It was a priority to ensure that Echodale would remain an active farm, provide public access to the scenic Park Hill area, and protect habitat for both plants and animals along Bassett Brook, which runs into the Manhan River.

Pascommuck led a successful effort to generate broad community support for the Echodale project, raising $300,000 toward the $2.85 million needed. The Trust for Public Land, the City of Easthampton, and the state’s Agricultural Preservation Restriction Program were critical to Echodale’s preservation, which was completed in 2008.

View of Mount Tom from Echodale Farm, Easthampton
(Marty Klein photo)

Gail Flood and Rodney Britt, who purchased the 140-acre farm, farmhouse, and outbuildings in 2008, are raising bees and heritage livestock breeds as well as vegetables and flowers for retail sale. As part of Echodale’s preservation, 25 acres across the road from the farm was protected as a City of Easthampton conservation area, which includes 40 community garden plots. Walking trails are planned through the conservation area and around the perimeter of Echodale Farm.

Currently, Pascommuck stewards 18 properties in Easthampton, comprising approximately 225 acres. As an all-volunteer land trust, Pascommuck attributes its success to good working relationships with the City of Easthampton and larger conservation organizations such as the Trust for Public Land and the Trustees of Reservations. With an active membership of about 125 people, led by a 14-member board of directors, the group is always seeking to connect with others who are passionate about land conservation.

For information about Pascommuck’s current projects, as well as descriptions and maps of eight conservation areas in Easthampton, visit pctland.org.

“We love the outdoors. We love the distinctive charms of Massachusetts. And we believe in celebrating and protecting them – forever, for everyone.”

These words greet visitors to the website of The Trustees of Reservations (The Trustees), the oldest conservation organization in Massachusetts. Since its founding more than 100 years ago, The Trustees have been “preserving for public use and enjoyment properties of exceptional scenic, historic, and ecological value in Massachusetts and working to protect special places across the state.”

The term “reservation” has resonated with the public since the time of The Trustees’ inception. In a letter published in the March 5, 1890, issue of Garden and Forest, Boston landscape architect Charles Eliot referred to reservations in proposing that natural and cultural landscapes be preserved, improved, and made accessible to the public. At a time when farmland and open space were rapidly disappearing due to industrialization and urban growth, Eliot’s letter led to The Trustees’ founding in 1891 as the first private non-profit conservation organization of its kind in the United States.

With more than 40,000 members, The Trustees care for 110 properties, comprising more than 26,000 acres, and monitor 285 Conservation Restrictions that protect another 20,000 acres. Unlike the land trusts in this series of profiles, The Trustees’ mission includes protecting historic houses and cultural and ecological resources. In western Massachusetts, The Trustees are known for their stewardship of such natural treasures as the Chesterfield Gorge and Ashfield’s Chapel Brook, as well as the William Cullen Bryant Homestead in Cummington and Naumkeag, the 19th-century masterpiece of architectural and landscape design built by Joseph Choate in Stockbridge.

Farmland preservation has been an important priority for The Trustees since before the formal Agricultural Preservation Restriction (APR) program was created in the 1980s. An early APR project of The Trustees was the protection of agricultural land at Warner Farm, a Local Hero farm, one of the oldest working farms in New England (1720), which also operates the famous Mike’s Maze in Sunderland.

Through its affiliation with Hilltown Land Trust, The Trustees protect working landscapes in the highlands of western Massachusetts, including hilltown farms, sugarbush, and forested land, all of which are integral to the local economy and quality of life.

Additionally, The Trustees own and manage eight working farms throughout the Commonwealth: Appleton Farms, Cornell Farm, Eleanor Cabot Bradley Estate, Moose Hill Farm, Moraine Farm, Land of Providence, Powisset Farm, and Weir River Farm. Five of these offer Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) shares. Others are maintained as agricultural landscapes, sometimes through leasing parts of the property to farmers.

The Land of Providence, Nuestras Raíces farm (The Trustees photo)

The Land of Providence, 25 acres along the Connecticut River between downtown Holyoke and the Massachusetts Turnpike, provides farmland to Trustees partner Nuestras Raíces (“Our Roots”), a Local Hero member and non-profit organization that promotes urban agriculture and provides opportunities for Latino and other immigrant communities in Holyoke to grow fresh food and raise livestock. Donated to The Trustees in 2009 by the Sisters of Providence, this fertile oasis offers visitors the chance to wander riverside paths through the floodplain forest, picnic next to the Connecticut River, and appreciate the busy activity of a community farm.

The Land of Providence, Nuestras Raíces farm (The Trustees photo)

Joanna Ballantine, The Trustees’ Western Massachusetts Regional Director, notes that properties like the Land of Providence provide opportunities for people to make connections with local healthy food, the land itself, and the beauty of agricultural landscapes. In 2012, The Trustees hosted 175 programs at their farms across the state – from festivals to 4-H events – that engaged nearly 11,000 participants.

Ballantine adds that involving the public in sustainable agriculture and the local food movement is essential to farmland preservation efforts. The Trustees are working with other land conservation organizations to raise public awareness of the urgency of protecting agricultural land, in order to ensure that the Valley’s valuable farmland is preserved for current and future generations.

For a wealth of information including details about each Trustees property, visit www.thetrustees.org.