The New American Gothic
~Written by Carolina Fojo, East Coast Fellow for Bon Appétit Mgmt. Co.
As a Fellow for Bon Appétit, I have the pleasure of traveling to local farms from which Bon Appétit purchases, and meeting the very people who provide us with the food we eat. Last month, I traveled to Dover, PA to visit one of the incredible farms that provides food at Goucher College—Sunnyside Farm.
Sunnyside Farm is run by husband and wife Homer Walden and Dru Peters, two kindred spirits with opposite personalities. Homer is the creative farmer, brilliant inventor, and engineer. Dru is the practical businesswoman who makes sure that their hard work pays off in the end. Neither could make the farm run on their own—but together they have built up a beautiful farm and successful business, and you only have to talk to them for two minutes to see that there is nothing else in the world they would rather be doing.
One of my favorite things about my visit to Sunnyside Farm (besides the delicious, free-range/cage-free/hormone-free/antibiotic-free…etc. eggs that I took home with me) was getting to enjoy Homer and Dru enjoying their life. This rock-star couple has an amazing energy about them; it’s joyful, full of life, and will keep you laughing long after you’ve left their farm. For example: when I asked to take a picture of the two of them, Homer promptly grabbed a pitch fork and posed “American Gothic”-style. Dru and Homer were grinning a bit too widely in their picture to truly match the mood in Grant Wood’s painting, but we all got a good chuckle of this “new” American Gothic!
Thanks to Dru and Homer for a wonderful visit, and for all that you do.
To see more photos from my visit to Sunnyside Farm, click here!