When I first met Adam Burke in fall of 2008, it was a windy day in the high desert east of Los Angeles. We sat outside Adam’s trailer that he shared with his wife Michele while she worked as a traveling pediatric nurse and he spent his days in rehabilitation for his war wounds.![](http://www.farmvetco.org/"wp-content/uploads//2010/04/AdamBurkeLarge1.jpg "AdamBurkeLarge")
Adam talked about farming in a way that only a farmer could – what the dirt smelled like, what the birds sounded like, how he liked the way the humidity felt, and how his mind got to relax when he sat on a tractor.
A farmer’s season starts long before the first seed is planted and Adam knew that. Standing outside his trailer, steadying his balance with his cane, he had already begun farming. Five thousand miles away and without a dime, Adam had been planning and constructing every detail of his farm – his plants, the soil mix, the containers, the irrigation system, how the berries would be grown and harvested and sold.
Adam’s body had taken a beating in Iraq but his spirit was strong and he knew he had something that he could focus on and that the hard physical and mental work he needed to farm was going to heal him.
The Farmer-Veteran Coalition was honored to help buy Adam his first plants, pots and potting mix. Our friend Deborah Beebe popped up with the name “Red, White and Blueberry.” As Adam wrote this morning, “The soil is fertile in Florida; FVC planted a seed and now is watching it rapidly grow.” We urge all the public support for Adam’s farm possible.
– Michael O’Gorman, FVC Founder and Project Director
*********** PRESS RELEASE ***********
Farming Project Invites Veterans to Work and Learn
Jacksonville, FL April 23, 2010
Former Army Sergeant Adam Burke, founder and director of Veterans Farm, wants to provide paying work and horticulture therapy for fellow disabled veterans. Last year, Adam and his wife Michele began raising and marketing “Red, White and Blueberries” in central Florida with support from the Farmer Veteran Coalition (www.farmvetco.org), which specializes in helping veterans find livelihoods in the food and farming sector.
This year money raised by Work Vessels for Veterans (www.workvesselsforveterans.org) has enabled Adam to secure 8 acres of land outside of Jacksonville where he plans to expand Veterans Farm to include other berries and organic vegetables while providing more job opportunities for disabled veterans. WVFV serves as Veterans Farm’s non-profit fiscal sponsor.
“Horticulture therapy by way of the blueberry farm helped my recovery so much that I thought it would only be greedy not to share it with others who have suffered so much,” Adam said. “It was nice to have other disabled veterans out there. We stick together and work as a team.”
Adam grew up on a family farm in Central Florida. The first member of his family to not go directly into farming, he joined the US Army instead, serving from 1995-2004. He served in Iraq with Operation Iraqi Freedom from December 2002 until March of 2004, when mortar fire near Balad gave him his second and most serious injury, earning him the Purple Heart.
Adam relates, “When I returned home I found it difficult going through the VA to get help for my TBI and PTSD. The psychologist and psychiatrist kept telling me that I needed to find a way to relieve stress. One of the best things I remember from my childhood was growing up on a farm. I remembered being in the outdoors and enjoying working with others. I remember the sound of the birds and the mist from the sprinklers, the wind and the calming effect it had on me.”
Adam says that his next step in developing Veterans Farm on its new land is to raise money to purchase the blueberry bushes and pine bark so that he can accept his first group of disabled veterans to train and operate the farm. He is also seeking donations of equipment to help complete the project. He plans to make his farm fully self-sustaining.
Adam Burke can be contacted via his website (www.veteransfarm.com) or email (veteransfarm@yahoo.com) or telephone (352-217-1662).
All donations for Veterans Farm through WVFV are tax deductible will go directly to helping disabled veterans and their recovery.
Release by the Farmer-Veteran Coalition Media Project, funded by Lewis Black
Adam,
First of all, THANK YOU for your service.
Secondly: I recently read the article in the Parade Magazine. It was far too short of a story. I’m sure there is alot more that wasn’t shared (probably should have been) but given the authors attempt to keep the story positive, I understand. You are an American hero. You gave yourself to serve and now you are providing a place where others like you can being the process of healing. You are my champion.
I’ve never written a note to a stranger before, but I so admire your efforts that I needed to express my gratitude. Bless you Adam.