Today we’d like to introduce you to Leslie Culpepper.
Hi Leslie, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
Growing up on a dairy farm, I loved exploring, being outside, and working with animals. After working in public education for over 10 years, I just had an itch to open up a farm school where I could work with animals, be a teacher and help others grow up with the same experiences that I did.
I pitched the idea to my cousin Matt who owns a pumpkin patch, Red Barn Ranch. We both thought his patch would be the perfect place for a farm school. We could take care of the animals that he has on his patch plus we would have lots of land to explore. It was a whirlwind after that trying to get all of the things done and ready to open. But by the end of the summer, we had our first group of little ranchers join us at the patch.
Since then, I really haven’t looked back but keep looking to how we can grow in the future. We are hoping to be able to build a classroom to house more kids in a class so we can get more little ones back on the farm, getting dirty and learning valuable life lessons that are only learned on the farm.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Leaving my job in public education was very hard for me. I was working in the same district that I attended as a child and love our district. Jumping right in to being a business owner was a bit challenging but seeing the kids learning on the farm makes it all worth it.
I would say that it has been a super smooth road so far. My family, farm school parents, and little ranchers have been so supportive! I have felt nothing but love from all of them since we opened earlier in the year.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
At LC’s Farm School, every day is so different. Some days we are playing in the snow and use hot hands to keep warm while other days we are digging for worms and squirting water on our heads to cool off. No matter what, we are enjoying our time outside.
A goal of mine was to start loving, embracing, and helping others to see the best of all of the weather, even the super hot and super cold days. On windy days and rainy days, we find joy. One thing that I think is super special about our farm school is that it is a working farm. Some days we see Mr. Matt (my cousin who lives on the farm) working cattle or tagging baby calves.
Other times we get to watch him plant sunflowers or feed round bales in the tractor. Another thing that sets us apart is our curriculum. Our curriculum is solely based on what is happening around us. In the spring when our baby chicks hatched and we found tadpoles in the creek, we learned about life cycles. The week it rained every day, we learned about the water cycle and rainbows.
When we planted our raised garden beds, we learned how to plant a seed, grow a seed and reap our harvest. We learned other life lessons as well. When one of our sweet chickens died, we learned how to respectfully burry and morn over a pet.
In the bitter cold, we learned to feel sympathy for our animals and the importance of keeping them safe and warm. Farm school teaches lessons that we can’t plan or prepare for but that we encourage and embrace as they happen.
What’s next?
Our future plan is to expand (a little).
We would love to have 15 kids in a class instead of 10. We want to work really hard to keep the intimacy of our small groups and not have too many that special moments are missed due to too many kids.
At the same time, we want to offer as many kids the opportunity to experience life in our little piece of the world. As far as animals go, you never know what you will see next at farm school. We are always adding to the troop.
Contact Info:
- Website: lcfarmschool.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/
lcfarmschool - Facebook: https://www.
facebook.com/LCFarmSchool
