Summer Outing

Please join Lambda Alpha International's Baltimore Chapter for our
Summer Outing
Wednesday, July 19 – Farming Inside the Beltway
4 p.m. Plantation Park Heights Urban Farm, 3811 Park Heights Ave.
5 p.m. Hidden Waters Farm, 3250 Old Court Road
 

The outing will feature two urban farms within the Beltway.
Beginning at 4 p.m. we will be at Plantation Park Heights Urban Farm in Park Heights and then from 5 pm to 6:30 we will be at Hidden Waters Farm in Pikesville, where we will enjoy wine and hors d'oeuvres.

Google Maps shows that travel time between the two sites should be approximately 17 minutes.
 

The Plantation Park Heights Urban Farm provides an oasis of
fresh produce to residents of a food desert, and it provides a safe space and structure for neighborhood youth as they engage in farming activities in conjunction with older neighborhood volunteers. The American Farm Bureau Federation named it as one of the ten semi-finalists for its national 2021 Ag Innovation Challenge. It was created in 2014 on a six-acre site that had previously been vacant land.

Our presenter at this site will be the founder and Executive Director of Plantation Park Heights, Richard Francis, widely known as “Farmer Chippy.” Farmer Chippy previously served as a field service engineer for Carl Zeiss Meditec AG and for GE Healthcare. He holds a B.S. from the University of Maryland Global Campus and is the co-founder of Trinidad & Tobago International Farmers.

The second location for our outing will be Hidden Waters Farm and Market, a 110-acre organic farm that produces beef, pork, poultry and produce. The farm is committed to regenerative agriculture focused on a symbiotic relationship between the livestock and their environment to create a unique and healthy ecosystem where all thrive and high quality, local products are made available to the community. 

Tom Baum, the owner of Hidden Waters Farm and Market, will be our presenter at this site. Tom also is founder of LaTerra Homes, an Annapolis-based developer of apartment and for-sale residential communities. Previously, Tom was a Partner at the Bozzuto Group where he oversaw its apartment development operations and later its home building division. He is a registered architect with a B.A. from the University of Illinois and a Masters in Real Estate Development from Columbia University. Tom grew up on a farm in Illinois. He has served as President of the Maryland Builders Industry Association (MBIA) and various non-profit boards.