Today we’d like to introduce you to Sara Rutten.
Hi Sara, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Our family bought these 100 acres in 2014 and I said, “I want to live off the land” and at that time it just meant raising the food we eat here on the land. We built our home on the land in 2016 and started to expand what our homestead had compared to our previous smaller homestead. Over the years I shared our story with friends and family and soon we became the place people went to ask questions about starting their homestead or the place where animals would be brought if they needed to be rescued or re-homed.
When covid happened and everything was shut down we saw all the sadness around us we decided to create a place where families could come and be free to run and enjoy without all the worry.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
We’ve had our fair share of ups and downs. It’s always hard to start a business, especially a farm business. Finding the animals we wanted to add to the farm takes time as we always want to make sure it is a good fit for our family and our homestead.
When we have a loss on the farm it’s always heartbreaking, we love all our animals (even the ones we raise for food) and they are the reason we smile and the reason we cry.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Our homestead operates as an organic farm and all animals are given the best life we can. We pride ourselves in being different from other farm venues in the area. When we are open for our fall festival days we strive to give families the best time. We have so much for the kids to do from feeding the animals, hay wagon rides, barrel train rides, rock painting, corn pit, and an obstacle course in the woods. We have live music from local artists every day that we are open. Our very own Farm to Table food trailer serves here on the farm during the festival days and also serves out in our community and private events. We make everything from scratch that we serve; definitely giving you that farm-to-table home-cooked meal.
Each year we strive to give families the best time and we are constantly adding things to the farm, new animals, new activities, and new events.
We offer a kids camp in the summer where your kids can come be part of farm life for the day. They help care for the animals, learn about each animal and the ones we raise to eat we teach them about why we raise them the way we do. It’s all about bringing awareness to where our food comes from.
Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs, or other resources you think our readers should check out?
We are constantly learning from others who share their knowledge with us and along with trusting God’s plan for our family.
Living on this homestead is truly awe-inspiring and each day we are so thankful for what we have and for being able to provide for our family and for other families. I follow a lot of accounts that are doing things that we are working towards adding here on the homestead. Most are so willing to help and guide along the way. When jumping into something new, never be afraid to admit you don’t know it all and to ask for help. Having great mentors is a must.
Contact Info:
- Website: the100acrehomestead.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the100acrehomestead
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/the100acrehomestead
