Since its inception in 2011, Felicia’s Farm has made it its mission to address hunger and food insecurity in Tucson, feeding those in need.
The farm was established in honor of Felicia Cutler who passed away in 2009, as a way for her husband David Cutler to keep her memory alive.
“She loved to feed the people she loved,” said Cutler. “We were always the house that the kids would come to, that people would show up at, and so I thought- great, I’ve got six acres, I need to take the back four acres and make a farm out of it for the people who need food.“
Over the past decade, that small four-acre farm has expanded to become a vital part of the Tucson community, and Felicia’s Farm now utilizes several different locations to grow fresh and abundant produce for hundreds of unhoused and low-income people in Tucson.
“We have 20 acres which used to be the vision quest property and we’re looking at doing some additional growing there,” said Cutler. “So we’re pretty happy with the growth and we’re pretty happy with what we’ve been able to do.”
Throughout the year, the farm grows many different kinds of fruits and vegetables including lettuce, chard, radishes, melons, and pomegranates. In addition, the farm is also home to 600 chickens.
“We give out a lot of eggs and we give out a lot of grains,” said Cutler. “We’ve had a really bumper crop this year, it’s been amazing.”
With these bumper crops (an unusually abundant harvest), it brings Cutler joy to know he’s able to feed even more people in need. In total, Felicia’s farm is usually able to produce 400 pounds of food and 1,000 eggs each week. This food is given to organizations like Casa Maria Soup Kitchen, Iskashitaa Refugee Network, Hope Inc., and Eloy Community Food Bank as well as others.
Cutler said that the farms are doing so well in fact, that they’re searching for new community partners to further their reach and provide food to even more people facing food insecurity.
“It’s a lot of food,” he said. “We’ve done such a good job growing that we’re looking for additional people to serve.”
A lot of food means a lot of work to be done on the farm.
Harvesting, planting, weeding, and watering are all part of the daily maintenance done by workers and volunteers to keep the farm running and put food on the tables.
The fresh crops are then quickly distributed to their partner organizations.
“We will drive it to where the organizations are, sometimes we have people come and pick it up,” Cutler added. “We pull it out of the ground, and then we try to evenly distribute it because there’s a lot of hungry people out there.”
Of course, the entire operation wouldn’t be possible without the dedication and support of volunteers, including families and support organizations.
“They come out here and they want to come out again,” said Mike Robins of Felicia’s Farm. “You know, it’s peaceful and quiet.”
One of those volunteer groups is the Tucson Cancer Conquerors, an all-volunteer support group that empowers cancer survivors and communities.
“It’s really neat to see these women who come out here and passionately garden,” said Cutler.
At the end of the day, the core of Felicia’s Farm is community.
“This is a community project,” Cutler added. “We’re excited that we’ve reached the point that it will be sustainable for many, many, many, many years in the future.”
Felicia’s Farm is located at 4141 E. River Rd. and is a 501(c)(3), Qualified Arizona Charity. The Arizona tax credit is applied dollar for dollar as a reduction for state income tax for each donation to Felicia’s Farm. For more information about the farm, visit feliciasfarm.org.
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