When a friend forwarded an announcement to Erin about HMI’s Beginning Women Farmer program in 2012, Erin submitted her application, and
soon found out she was accepted into the program. “I went to the first class with a negative, defeated and frustrated attitude. “I was totally blown away. It was truly a life-changing experience,” says Erin. She and her husband Ray were in the midst of financial struggles at their Helder~Herdwyck Farm in East Berne, NY. They felt stuck in the old "you need to spend money to make money" cycle. Two years later and having graduated from the course, Erin was empowered to make decisions that would help launch the farm forward. In 2014, she was able to quit her part-time job and dedicate herself full-time to her dream. Read Erin's Case Study here.