First-time farm family optimistic about new life

GRETNA Inside the big white farmhouse, 6-year-old Timmy Fuhrmann squirms on the carpet as his mom teaches him phonics. "Ned, Ted, red . . . " he recites from the chalkboard, following his mother's lead.

When it's his sister's turn, Timmy glances out the window. "The tractor," a red sitting lawn mower, sits idle in the driveway. Up the hill, his older brothers and sisters are clearing dead tree branches from the cow pasture, and piling them up for a bonfire.

As the lesson winds down, Timmy can barely contain himself.

"Can I go and drive the tractor now?" he blurts out.

"Almost," Kim replies in a calm voice.

The Fuhrmann family are first-generation farmers. Last June, they took a chance on a 38-acre plot in Gretna, which they named Our Father's Farm.

For years, the fields lay fallow -- remnants of an old tobacco farm whose time had come and gone. The farm meant a new beginning for Kim and Jack Fuhrmann.

They saw a place to put down roots after seven years of missionary work in Chad. Most importantly, they saw a future for their seven children: Daniel, 1; Joy, 3; Timmy, 6; Hope, 8; Sheila Grace, 10; Joshua, 11; and Samuel, 13.

Their start is small-scale, but their dreams are big. And so are the challenges that lie ahead. "We're first-generation farmers, so we've got this incredible learning curve," Jack says.

A professional pilot, Jack, 40, grew up in a farmhouse, but his parents weren't farmers; they leased out most of their land. For Kim, 37, a child of the suburbs, the farm was foreign territory.

The transition to farm life was made somewhat easier by the seven years of missionary work in Africa. Living in a Third World country taught the family the value of a simple life, and not to take water, electricity and other modern amenities for granted.

"We kind of learned the school of hard knocks in Africa. It helped us to be ready for this," Jack says.

The Fuhrmanns are among a growing number of Americans nationwide who are trying their luck with small-scale farming. Intertwined the "buy local" movement, farms like theirs typically cater to customers who want fresh, locally grown meat and produce free of chemicals and hormones.

Our Father's Farm sells all-natural products, including eggs, poultry, beef, milk, produce, baked goods. They have found customers through the Internet, word of mouth and by networking at local community markets.

Their goal is to produce enough to feed the family and pay for their bills and expenses. But for now, Jack works part time as a flight instructor at Liberty University's flight school to supplement their income.

In addition to making the farm self-sufficient, Kim and Jack hope that farm life will teach their children hard work, independence and practical skills that will transfer to their adult lives.

As Kim puts it, "You can't walk away from it. There's no calling in sick, no sleeping in."

Liz Barry is a staff writer at The News & Advance in Lynchburg.