The Land That Waited for Us

I’ve passed by this land my entire life. Tucked away in our Appalachian hills, it sat quiet while the world around it changed. Subdivisions rose, highways stretched, and farmland slowly disappeared. But this 25-acre patch remained untouched, as if it were waiting for something more meaningful.

When we first started looking for a farm, it was a pipe dream, something we hoped for but never truly anticipated. It felt far off, maybe even unrealistic.

At first, we set our sights on a smaller piece of land just down the road from our outreach center. It was within eyesight of our current buildings, close, manageable, and familiar. We thought it might be the perfect place to begin. But things didn’t go as we hoped. The conversations didn’t move forward, and the doors just wouldn’t open.

Still, we pressed on. We knocked on doors, made phone calls, and even got harassed by an angry dog. We were gruffly told “no” by elderly neighbors who weren’t interested in selling. One by one, each possibility slipped away. And with every closed door, we began to wonder if the dream was asking too much.

Then, almost without meaning to, we turned our eyes just a little farther down the road to a stretch of land we had passed for years without giving it much thought. It wasn’t for sale. It wasn’t advertised. But there it was. Waiting.

What we didn’t expect was how perfect it would be. This land, just hundreds of feet from our current buildings, had been here all along. Quiet. Preserved. As if it had been set aside for something more.

Now, just days away from closing, we can’t help but feel the weight of what this means. The land we once thought we needed fell through, and something far greater has taken its place. With gentle hills, natural water, and rich soil, it is perfectly suited for the vision of Helpful Harvest Farm.

This is more than just land. It is a story of persistence, timing, and unexpected grace. It’s a place where healing will take root. Where food will be grown with purpose. Where children will learn, families will gather, and lives will be changed, one row, one harvest, one act of kindness at a time.

We went looking for land. What we found was purpose.

We still can’t believe it’s real.

And we can’t wait to grow it with you.