Partridge Creek Farms breaks ground on Intergenerational Farm

Ishpeming, Mich. (WLUC) - On Friday, Partridge Creek Farms held a groundbreaking in Ishpeming for what will become the Intergenerational Farm. Founder Dan Perkins said this new farm will play a significant role in the community by creating a sustainable food source.

“We are gonna grow 50,000 lbs. of food and then we are going to bring it into the cafeteria,” said Perkins. “We are also becoming a teaching facility and we will be bringing in champions in other communities who wanna build the same type of model in their town. We really wanna be the focus of the U.P.’s development and growth into a resilient food system.”

Partridge Creek says getting to this point took many years of planning and plenty of help including grants, donations and community support. Perkins said that Friday’s groundbreaking is gratifying. He also added that the people around this project are what excited him the most.

“When people come together and do something for the betterment of their community,” said Perkins. “They end up becoming fast friends and end up happier.”

Partridge Creek Farms Director May Tsurpos said the farm also seeks to solve community health issues like childhood obesity.

“Increase rates of diabetes, obesity, loneliness disconnects, social-emotional, depression,” said Tsurpos. “All of these things come from increased disconnection from each other and our food.”

Tsurpos also said the farm has the potential to bring unity.

“We hope that this space brings people together so that they can help each other out,” said Tsurpos. ”We can eat together and we can learn together and you start to build a support system.”

This project is projected to take five years and construction begins next week.

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