2009.06.11: June 11, 2009: Headlines: COS - Bolivia: Agriculture: Organic Food: Silver Chips Online: Bolivia RPCV Marc Grossman, for example, spends five to six hours each week from May to November planting, harvesting and selling organic produce that he grows on land leased near his house in Olney, Md
Peace Corps Online:
Directory:
Bolivia:
Peace Corps Bolivia :
Peace Corps Bolivia: New Stories:
2009.06.11: June 11, 2009: Headlines: COS - Bolivia: Agriculture: Organic Food: Silver Chips Online: Bolivia RPCV Marc Grossman, for example, spends five to six hours each week from May to November planting, harvesting and selling organic produce that he grows on land leased near his house in Olney, Md
Bolivia RPCV Marc Grossman, for example, spends five to six hours each week from May to November planting, harvesting and selling organic produce that he grows on land leased near his house in Olney, Md
Grossman, who tended to a family garden growing up in Columbus, Ohio, first became interested in agriculture when he lived in Bolivia as part of the Peace Corps. "I got a sense for the critical role agriculture plays in society," he recalls. After returning from Bolivia in 2000, Grossman took a job at an organic farm in Ohio. "Originally, after working a season and seeing how hard we worked I thought it was insane," he says. "I told myself I was never going to do this for a living. But I kept growing seeds."
Bolivia RPCV Marc Grossman, for example, spends five to six hours each week from May to November planting, harvesting and selling organic produce that he grows on land leased near his house in Olney, Md
Rolling in the dough
Teachers take on second jobs to make extra money
by Lauren Kestner, Online News and Copy Editor
[Excerpt]
Toiling in the soil
NSL teacher Marc Grossman, for example, spends five to six hours each week from May to November planting, harvesting and selling organic produce that he grows on land leased near his house in Olney, Md. "We've been a certified organic farm for three years now. That means we don't use any petroleum-based chemicals," he explains. "We have a focus on vegetables that taste good. It's also important that we grow sustainable and environmentally-friendly products."
Grossman, who tended to a family garden growing up in Columbus, Ohio, first became interested in agriculture when he lived in Bolivia as part of the Peace Corps. "I got a sense for the critical role agriculture plays in society," he recalls. After returning from Bolivia in 2000, Grossman took a job at an organic farm in Ohio. "Originally, after working a season and seeing how hard we worked I thought it was insane," he says. "I told myself I was never going to do this for a living. But I kept growing seeds."
Senior Helder Hernandez, hired three years ago to help Grossman tend to and sell his organic produce, can attest to the backbreaking labor that makes the sale of these popular organic products possible. "You can't use normal dirt - you have to make it," Hernandez says, referencing a process that takes hours.
Although his organic farming enterprise started out slowly, making only a $500 profit in the first year, Grossman now makes about $3,000 a year and plans to expand this year by forming a partnership with two other men interested in selling the produce from Grossman's farm. Grossman believes that his farm's products, which range from mixed salad to heirloom tomatoes and melons, appeal to customers at the Olney Farmer's Market on many different levels. "It tastes better, fresher and it lasts for two weeks," he says. "It's different at the supermarket - by the time you eat it, it's been sitting around for seven days."
Despite the extensive manual labor required, Grossman finds organic farming to be a welcome respite from the cumbersome and often stressful situations encountered at school. "It's fun to play in the soil," he says. "It's like putting together a puzzle to find a way to make a profit."
Links to Related Topics (Tags):
Headlines: June, 2009; Peace Corps Bolivia; Directory of Bolivia RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Bolivia RPCVs; Agriculture; Organic Food; Maryland
When this story was posted in June 2009, this was on the front page of PCOL:
Peace Corps Online The Independent News Forum serving Returned Peace Corps Volunteers
| Join Us Mr. President! "We will double the size of the Peace Corps by its 50th anniversary in 2011. And we'll reach out to other nations to engage their young people in similar programs, so that we work side by side to take on the common challenges that confront all humanity," said Barack Obama during his campaign.
Read how RPCV's rallied and and marched to the White House to support a bold new Peace Corps for a new age. |
| Director Ron Tschetter: The PCOL Interview Peace Corps Director Ron Tschetter sat down for an in-depth interview to discuss the evacuation from Bolivia, political appointees at Peace Corps headquarters, the five year rule, the Peace Corps Foundation, the internet and the Peace Corps, how the transition is going, and what the prospects are for doubling the size of the Peace Corps by 2011. Read the interview and you are sure to learn something new about the Peace Corps. PCOL previously did an interview with Director Gaddi Vasquez. |
Read the stories and leave your comments.
Some postings on Peace Corps Online are provided to the individual members of this group without permission of the copyright owner for the non-profit purposes of criticism, comment, education, scholarship, and research under the "Fair Use" provisions of U.S. Government copyright laws and they may not be distributed further without permission of the copyright owner. Peace Corps Online does not vouch for the accuracy of the content of the postings, which is the sole responsibility of the copyright holder.
Story Source: Silver Chips Online
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; COS - Bolivia; Agriculture; Organic Food
PCOL44109
85