Mountain Food & Farm Apprenticeship Program Apprentice & Mentor Experiences

Apprentices	Mentors
Apprentice: Chizoba Uwakwe, a third year student at Western Carolina University studying Management and Marketing, apprenticed with Lauren at the Haywood Historic Farmers Market. She worked on website design and content, marketing strategies, marketing material and brand development, social media, community engagement and outreach. She especially enjoyed bringing her marketing degree skills to the table, creating some fun and engaging content for Farmer’s Market customers to enjoy. The highlight of her experience was “... getting to work with Lauren, the marketing coordinator for the HHFM, she was absolutely wonderful, had great communication and was so supportive when it came to my ideas. I thoroughly enjoyed having her as my first client experience.” Chizoba says “I have gathered so much knowledge and experience, from learning from my fellow apprentices and the advisors. I learned how to adapt to working remotely especially during this time of Corona, when it comes to hosting meetings, attending meetings, and making sure all of my deliverables were getting done as well as the clients.”	Mentor: Haywood Farmers Market They say: “Haywood's Historic Farmers Market is a producer-only market in Waynesville, NC, featuring local produce, meat, eggs, dairy, honey, baked goods, heritage crafts and more from Haywood or adjacent counties. Since 2008 we have operated Saturday mornings in a beautiful outdoor setting by the HART Community Theater from April through October. This season, we are excited to be able to extend our season until December 19th for the first time. The highlight of our 2020 season was participating in the EmPOWERING Mountain Food Systems Project apprenticeship program and working with a fantastic WCU marketing student, Chizoba Uwakwe. A social media whiz, she made improvements to our Facebook and Instagram accounts, created beautiful content, designed engaging posts and activities like thank-you videos and farmers market bingo, and helped us learn from the analytics. What's more, because of the difficult circumstances surrounding COVID-19, she accomplished her apprenticeship totally remotely. Her professionalism, can-do attitude, and great work ethic made mentoring her a pleasure. Most importantly, her work will be lasting: she created a market branding guide, video and post templates for ongoing use, an ongoing social media schedule, and made recommendations for ongoing improvements. We are grateful to her and to EMFS for this opportunity!”
Apprentice: Jackson Matthews was a senior at Western Carolina University studying Fine Arts with a Graphic Design Emphasis. He interned with Deal Family Farms. Jackson worked on marketing strategies, creating a social media presence, marketing material and brand development and community engagement as well as some website design and content development. He says “The highlight of the experience for myself would be working on a larger scale project that requires me to work on pieces of a brand that I may not work on normally. This allowed me to see how much actually goes into revamping someone’s brand.” This apprenticeship sparked his interest in the Local Food Movement for himself and potentially, for a future career!	Mentor: Deal Family Farms, a local family farm that produces and sells fruits and vegetables. They say: “Jackson Mathews was a wonderful asset to our farm this summer! He had great insight into how to make our social media and website more visually appealing, as well as updating our verbiage. He was patient and kind, our lives were really busy and he took our vague ideas and suggestions and RAN WITH THEM!! He researched with others to learn how to make our interface better. I am thankful for his timely help!”
Apprentice: Hazel Stuart, a second-year student at Haywood Community College pursuing an Associates of Art degree. She interned with The Crown Restaurant. Her work focused on marketing material & brand development, understanding farm business ideology for the local food movement and community engagement and outreach. Hazel said “I learned so much about website development that I didn't know before,“ and recognized that her apprenticeship experience work has since helped her pursue new jobs.	Mentor: The Crown Restaurant The Crown is a new, community focused restaurant in the heart of Brasstown, NC. We use as many local produce, meats, cheeses and other items in our menu as possible and delight in the variety and quality of foods that we can get from our local farmers. As a farm to table restaurant, our goals lie in supporting our local farm communities, practicing environmental sustainability, and bringing community together by providing a safe, comfortable, and welcoming space that caters to and attracts people of all ages and backgrounds. We are extremely honored to have been able to work with the EmPOWERing Mountain Food Systems Project via the Mountain Food & Farm Apprenticeship Program. Our intern, Hazel Stuart, is a delightful young lady who helped us to create marketing materials and a creative plan for building our ability to market our restaurant moving forward. Hazel began by starting a website for us to build on. She also created blog posts; designed cards for us to leave in local airbnb’s to encourage visitors; and made assorted stickers to hand out to clientele. Her value was not only in the things she made for us, but also in the meetings and conversations that fueled creative thinking for ways that we could market our vision. Our experience in being a part of this project has been a positive asset to our business and we’re very grateful to have had the opportunity to participate in such a wonderful program!
Apprentice: Savannah Hutsell, a fourth-year student at Western Carolina University apprenticed with Shady Brook Grass Farm in Buncombe County. She worked on website design and content, marketing strategies, marketing material and brand development, social media, community engagement and outreach. Savannah says “I had a great experience working one-on-one with a real local business, helping them with website development, creating a consistent brand message, etc. I learned a lot valuable, transferable skills to other jobs from collaborating with my teammates and working with my supervisors, primarily Heidi Dent. The best part of this program was that I had the opportunity to learn and do work independently, but I was also given all the resources I needed when I needed help.” With her work with Shady Brook Grass Farm, Savannah “loved the independence of working with my client and having some creative freedom when improving marketing strategies.”	Mentor: Shady Brook Farm, a local family farm and ranch that raises cattle, poultry, grass as well as running an apiary. Our experience with the Mountain Food & Farm Apprenticeship Program was in all ways positive. The program coordinator(s) went to great lengths to ensure the program would happen in spite of numerous challenges presented by the Coronavirus pandemic. Throughout the delay required to revamp the program to meet new criteria and specifications Christina Newhouse remained approachable and forthcoming with updates and information regarding the program's progress. With the mentorship program transitioning to remote interactions only, interacting with our apprentice presented some unique challenges in the beginning of the program. Those challenges dealt specifically with building mutual trust and a positive working relationship; however, our apprentice, Savannah Hutsel, took the required steps to get to know our business so as to provide useful input and ideas. She took the time to learn about the marketing channels we use, and instead of being persistent about channels we were not interested in, she provided good ideas and work that will be usable to us for quite a while. I would highly recommend any farm considering applying for this program to do so, and I will most certainly apply again if the opportunity is available to me.
Apprentice: Shelby Hyatt, a senior at Western Carolina University with a degree in Nutrition and Dietetics. Shelby apprenticed with MountainWise, a program that works with the eight westernmost counties of North Carolina to provide opportunities for physical activity, access to local fresh fruits and vegetables, as well as support for tobacco-free places and access to services for chronic-disease management. She says “I graduated with a degree in Nutrition and Dietetics so this was a very different experience for me. I learned so much about what goes into organizations, especially the planning and steps that are necessary to promote a business. One highlight was being partnered with MountainWise, an organization that has a mission that I too am very passionate about. Another highlight was getting to hear from the other apprentice’s weekly. Because I did not have a marketing background like the others, I learned a lot by listening to their work.”	Mentor: MountainWise works with the eight westernmost counties of North Carolina to provide opportunities for physical activity, access to local fresh fruits and vegetables, provide support for substance-free places and access to services for chronic-disease management. They say, “We believe that when environments encourage and are supportive of healthy choices, it becomes easier to make those choices. This year, in partnership with EmPOWERing Mountain Food Systems, we hosted an apprentice to work with our Double Up Food Bucks program. DUFB is a SNAP/EBT Nutrition Incentive program offered at several retailers across the region. The apprentice (Shelby Hyatt) developed marketing materials to promote the program at the Jackson & Haywood Farmers Markets, as well as educational materials to be used with our DUFB customers. The apprenticeship was invaluable to our organization in helping us strengthen marketing & outreach initiatives targeted towards communities that experience food access challenges, while also supporting our local farmers. We are so appreciative of EMFS for the opportunity to work with such a bright and talented WCU student.”
Apprentice: Zanaya Salaam, a third-year student at Western Carolina University studying Management and Marketing, apprenticed with Long Family Farms and Gallery. She worked primarily on website design and content, and marketing strategies and content development. She did some work with their branding, and community outreach through social media. This apprenticeship has inspired Zanaya to take a personal interest in the Local Food Movement and consider a career in this area. She says: “Prior to this apprenticeship, I had absolutely no marketing experience. Because of that, I was nervous that I would not have a huge impact on my farm (but I was determined to do well!). Boy, was I wrong! I learned A LOT during this apprenticeship and I have had such an impact on this farm and their family. This experience has been so special for me, I am extremely grateful that I was given the opportunity to become an apprentice for this team. This entire experience has been amazing. Not many places will hire someone with no experience in the given field. This apprenticeship has been so valuable for me. I have learned so much and I am happy that I learned more about the farming and local food industry. This has truly been special.”	Mentor: Long Family Farm & Gallery Watch this video interview with Nancy Long of Long Family Farm about her mentorship experience.
Apprentice: Mallaidh Mleziva & Kris Ly I really enjoyed the team that I worked with throughout this project. I enjoyed working with another student, professors, and the farm. Having the weekly meetings to chat and touch base on the progress of our efforts was really nice! I also really enjoyed the variety of tasks that I was assigned, from developing how-to guides and creating evergreen social media content to researching competitors and brainstorming a design for the new website. Kris Ly, a third-year student at Western Carolina University studying Marketing/Marketing Management + Computer Information Systems, apprenticed with EmPOWERING Mountain Food Systems, worked with Molly and their EMFS team to design a website that allows the public to interface with their client, creating the opportunity for increased revenue and agritourism. She worked to implement marketing strategies and product branding for her client. Kris said her highlights included the opportunity to put her learning into real-world application and implementing strategies from her classrooms in a real-world setting. She says “While, yes, I still had others to provide me with guidance and instructions, I was empowered to be in charge of what I delivered and how I completed my tasks. To me, the responsibilities helped form a realistic expectation of how the productivity flow and operations look like in real-world companies and organizations.	Mentor: Sustainabillies llc. They say: “Our sustainable, solar-powered homestead is tucked in a high mountain valley of WNC. The Sustainabillies, Dustin Cornelison and Sara Martin, are makers of a wide variety of metal products including; garden tools, homestead essentials, functional art, hand forged knives, and furniture. We grow and sell organic produce and plants. Two Trees Farm, the homestead of the Sustainabillies, is nestled in a high elevation valley of Haywood County NC. The Appalachian Mountains are an amazing and challenging place to work towards living off the land. Our connection to nature inspires us to live lightly on the Earth and help others to do so as well. We offer people the chance to learn from us, share with us, and experience sustainable living with onsite classes and farmstays. Our experience with EmPowering Mountain Food Systems was wonderful. We were provided the unique opportunity to have a team of interns and WCU faculty help us to develop our digital presence for our business. Christina facilitated this process and provided a link between us and our team, helping to gently guide the process so it would be fruitful. The product that was generated was beyond our expectations and has added so much to our business presence online. Our website is very professional and has allowed several customers to interact with us before actually coming to our farm. We are working right now to prepare the site to advertise our classes and farmstays for 2021 which will get our business up and running in the face of the COVID challenges we have weathered over 2020. We cannot thank EmPowering Mountain Food Systems enough for this transformative support.”
Apprentice: Andrew Bryson Andrew wasn’t sure what to expect when he applied, but “four months and over a hundred hours later I am amazed at the results,” he reflects. His work included bottling, labeling and working with honey, wax candles and many honey products. He also got to work in the Mead Brewery and gained a wealth of knowledge. Andrew says “I got paid not only in money, but in valuable knowledge on and off the topic of honey as well.” He is extremely thankful to all involved.	Mentor: Wehrloom Honey They say: “Thank you so much for all your hard work and for setting us up with our intern, Andrew Bryson. We understand that these are trying times and appreciate the effort. Andrew was a great intern and I hope he walks away feeling this was a valuable learning experience. He was always on time, and ready to work hard. No matter what the task he was asked to complete he was always up for the challenge and we gave him plenty of challenges. Our processes are very unique and he took them head on. Unfortunately, timing and Covid 19 made our progress and getting him integrated into our family slower than either of us would have hoped, but I think that’s just the times we’re living in right now. I’m sure Andrew has a bright future in the workforce and hopefully some of the processes he learned here will carry over into whatever career path he ultimately chooses. We appreciate the opportunity to participate in the program and hope to continue so in the future."
Apprentice: Matt Jones Matt relates his take-aways from working with the mentors of Candy Mountain Farm: “Working at Candy Mountain Farm has been a blessing to me during these last three months. I am passionate about growing things and learning from active CSA farmers with years of experience has been invaluable. I had been a Candy Mountain CSA customer before and admired their quality produce. Steve and Frances put me to work, but they are excellent teachers and took their roles as mentors very seriously. They taught me the ins and outs of growing organically, starting plants from seed and working with transplants. I learned how to care for both young and established plants. Frances taught me the importance of frequent weeding, cultivation, and watering. All planting decisions are informed by the CSA model and its customers. Frances and Steve showed me the value of having a farmer’s resilience. We experienced the loss of two crops during my time there: one to pests and the other to weather. Undaunted, we pressed on and replanted because a farmer must be ready and flexible. More than teaching me how to grow food, France and Steve taught me valuable lessons for navigating life. As my wife and I embark upon our own agricultural endeavors I feel inspired and encouraged by my experience with Candy Mountain Farm.”	Mentor: Candy Mountain Farm Francis of Candy Mountain farm sung the praises of working with Matt and found him to be a hard worker motivated to learn. Since Matt and his wife are starting their careers in agriculture, Matt got to experience the pros and cons of farming on a small area with “water issues.” Francis commented on the boom and bust of the spring storms and droughts. She and her husband Julian were grateful to have the help with the greenhouse mending and management, weeding and transplanting, watering and re-planting of failed crops this spring. Mentoring the next generation was fulfilling and fun!