“A lot of individuals grow up on a farm and have to move to a city for services, and this way a lot of individuals can stay in their own community and stay on the farm,” she said.
Farm residents will have first choice of the 15 available vocational jobs.
Possible plans for work on the farm include a petting zoo, market garden and flower business.
Zacharias said these businesses will help residents learn to support themselves in a work environment while bringing them together with the surrounding community.
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Vintage power on display at Saskatchewan tractor pull
At the Ag in Motion farm show held earlier this year near Langham, Sask., a vintage tractor pull event drew pretty significant crowds of show goers, who were mostly farmers.
“We want people to come out to the land, too,” Zacharias said.
“To come and volunteer, and come out to, maybe, if we have a harvest festival, or come to the petting zoo, come and hang out with the residents.”
She said Aberdeen residents have been enthusiastic about including the farm’s residents in the community.
In his speech at the opening ceremony, Aberdeen mayor Glen Ogilvy said the residents of his town are eager to welcome them.
“We’ve learned that everybody has their challenges, and we’ve learned, I’ve certainly learned, to not feel sorry for the people that are requiring some special attention, but to support them like our neighbours, because they are our neighbours,” he said.
Construction is expected to begin soon, and Zacharias said it should be finished early next fall.
At that time, Neufeld and Zacharias will begin the process of moving residents into the home. It will be a slow transition because they plan to bring residents in one at a time.
Residents will be based on Saskatchewan’s waiting lists for specialized, residential and day-program services for people with intellectual disabilities.
We’ve just returned from our grandsons’ first birthday parties.
Reid’s birthday is first, and I celebrated with him and his little buddies in Vancouver.
For birthday cake, my daughter Marla and I made carrot cupcakes with a cream cheese icing, sweetened with apple juice and colored with pureed blueberries.
The adults preferred the recipe below with the icing sugar, but the children ate the softened cream cheese/juice blend.
Ben, my son-in-law, arranged them in the shape of a caterpillar, with shoestring licorice legs. We used a recipe that Marla got from her maternal grandma, and adapted it to have less sugar for the little ones.
The next day we flew to Calgary to celebrate Leif’s birthday with him.
How adorable that was, watching the two little boys be together, four days apart in age, with two unique personalities that are already observable at one year old.It is priceless for Don and I as grandparents to enjoy this experience.
