February 14 is the deadline to submit an application to Farmer Veteran Coalition's (FVC) Farmer Veteran Fellowship Fund, which is on track to award a total of $500,000 in grants in 2022 to military veterans and currently serving members of the U.S. Armed Forces who are now farming. Awards range from $1,000 to $5,000 and can be used to purchase farming equipment and related supplies that will make a direct impact on their farming operation. To apply, visit www.farmvetco.org/fvfellowship.
Funding for the 2022 Farmer Veteran Fellowship Fund is made possible by Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP), Kubota Tractor Corporation, Tractor Supply Company Foundation and Tractor Supply Co., Northwest Farm Credit Services, Homestead Implements, Tarter Farm and Ranch Equipment, Sugar Bottom Farm, Vital Farms, and Barreras Family Farm.
“We are so close to our goal of raising $500,000 to award to farmer veterans during the 2022 Fellowship cycle and it’s not too late for companies and individual donors to help us get across the finish line,” said Rachel Petitt, FVC’s Fellowship Fund program manager. “The money raised for the Fellowship Fund goes directly to veterans and gives them a well-deserved boost to their farming operation.”
Since it was established in 2011, the Farmer Veteran Fellowship Fund has awarded $3.5 million in small grants to more than 800 veterans. Access to capital is often one of the biggest challenges beginning farmers face and the Fellowship Fund was established to help address that challenge for U.S. Military veterans and servicemembers who are embarking on careers in agriculture.
Veterans who submit an application to the Farmer Veteran Fellowship Fund are automatically entered into Kubota’s Geared to Give program, which provides donated equipment and grants to help farmer veterans achieve self-sufficiency and take their farming operation to the next level. The Geared to Give program has provided 31 pieces of equipment to farmer veterans since it was established in 2015. To learn more about the Geared to Give program, visit Kubota Cares (www.kubotausa.com/kubota-cares/farmer-veteran-coalition).
Last year, 138 farmer veterans from around the country received more than $420,000 for things like greenhouses, walk-in coolers, grow tents, walk-behind tractors, fencing, cold storage units, water filtration systems, and honey processing equipment, among many other items.
To learn more about Farmer Veteran Coalition and the Farmer Veteran Fellowship Fund please visit www.farmvetco.org.
To sponsor equipment for the Fellowship Fund, contact Rachel Petitt at rachel@farmvetco.org. To donate to support farmer veterans directly, visit www.farmvetco.org/givingfire or text GIVE and the dollar amount to 270-838-3276 (270-VET-FARM).
About Farmer Veteran Coaltion
The mission of Farmer Veteran Coalition is mobilizing veterans to feed America. Established in 2008, its in-house programs include the Farmer Veteran Fellowship Fund small grant program, the nationally recognized Homegrown By Heroes label for veteran-grown products, and national and regional conferences. As the nation’s largest nonprofit assisting veterans and active-duty members of the U.S. Armed Forces embark on careers in agriculture, FVC has been successful in getting millions of dollars of USDA funds appropriated for farmer veteran and the groups that support them. Learn more at: www.farmvetco.org or follow on Facebook or Instagram at @FarmerVeteranCoalition and Twitter at @FarmVetCo.
Source : Farmer Veteran Coalition