Esther Manor Farm

The Esther Manor Farm was birthed at the height of a global pandemic. As the universe grappled with the uncertainty of the novel virus, lockdowns, food shortage, and social distancing, drives to rural, expansive farmlands and nature connected me to earth’s bounty, peace, growth, and rebirth. These natural environs reminded me of my youthful years with my Grandma at her small holder farm in the rural setting of Bali, Cameroon, West Africa. My grandmother had an antidote for every ailment. She would boil lemon grass to chase fevers, create herbal concoctions with papaya leaves and guava leaves to aid with constipation, and prepare vegetable juices to boost our immune system. Grandma would crack palm nuts to make palm kernel, “mayanga” oil, which she would use lather our ashy bodies that would later glisten in the sun as they soaked up the Vitamin E. Grandma’s kitchen served such favorites as njama njama, njanga bonsu, fufu, bitter leaf soup and ‘okongobong’, foods packed with fiber and anti-oxidants that provided much needed calcium and nutrients for my growing body. As the pandemic dragged on, I yearned for the comfort of  Grandma’s farm and her superfoods. Then it occurred to me to start a farm with African produce as a gift to my community. After lots of reflection and prayers, back country roads led to  expansive land in the heart of rural countryside in Virginia. In this new environment, our neighbors were different from us culturally, ideologically, and racially. But they welcomed us enthusiastically and helped us settle in. We met for coffee, took walks, and had dinners together. Our shared family values, humanity, and sense of community trumped everything else. In this space of bounty and abundance, The Esther Manor Farm was conceived to grow food, build a diverse community, and create cross-cultural exchanges.