Page 13 - Newsletter_Summer_2018

He thought he would “play at farming.” Instead of building a home, he married and plans changed. There wasn’t
enough time or money to farm so he rented out the land but always hoped to return to the farm.

A turning point came at age 59. Brian had both hips replaced within 6 weeks. Once he recovered from surgery, he
felt 20 years younger and spent some time taking a look at his life and decided it was time to make the farm dream
happen.

He continued working at his engineering business but started leaving at 5:00 and working at the farm for several
hours, figuring it out as he went along. His brother Bob retired, noticed and came to help him build a barn.

Brian knew he wanted to find a way to have long term, small scale success in farming. One day his wife, Dr. Martha
Stewart, came home with a bottle of organic sauerkraut from an out of town trip. She explained the concepts of
probiotics, gut health, and healthy eating that many people are focused on now. So the idea of making sauerkraut
took hold. He planted cabbage that had a short growing season, got instructions from a friend, and learned from
Safety Rules and Kitchen Rules through MOFGA. He canned his first batch and sent it to friends and family for
feedback and kept tweaking his recipe. He got his kitchen licensed and product approved and was in the sauerkraut
business.

His 100% organic sauerkraut is now for sale locally at Andy’s IGA and the County Co-op and in stores in Presque
Isle, Millinocket, Bangor, and Brewer.

Brian is the first to admit that the key to his success is his production manager, Megan Skehan (2009). Megan has a
background in farming with other local farms and is interested in organic farming. She’s the planner and the planter
and sauerkraut maker. This year the farm will offer almost thirty varieties of organic vegetables through CSA Shares,
the County Co-op, and the Community Market. Brian is the Marketing Director for the farm while continuing to
run his engineering business from the farm office.

Brian’s dream of creating a working farm out of an empty field is becoming a reality. He enjoys all aspects of
running a farm, but it was clear from our conversation that Brian’s favorite thing is riding the tractor. As he said,
“It’s all about the tractor.”

Alumni Board Members

Lorraine Davis Quint ‘55
Gary Bossie ‘57
Peter Fitzpatrick ‘59
Rachel Sylvester Good ‘60
Patricia Donovan Fitzpatrick ‘63
Karen Eleiott Donato ‘69
Jerry York ‘70
Janice Cowperthwaite Kelley ‘72
Jon McLaughlin ‘73
Nancy Ketch ‘82
Bruce Haggerty ‘86
Lauren Peabody Fitzpatrick ‘86
Marty Bouchard ‘87
Chris Fitzpatrick ‘79
Courtesy of Henry Gartley ‘77 Katie Windhalm Hill ‘05
“A day at the trotting park - circa early 1900’s”
www.houltonalumni.com PAGE 13