By Joseph Montebello

One day Ken Holzberg and Tom Kopfensteiner decided to look for a country house. Holzberg began a six-month cross-country trip and eventually wound up in Dutchess County. When he saw the property in Millbrook, he knew he had found their new home.

“I called Tom and said, ‘Get up here, I found it.’” Thus in 2000 they purchased the 15-acre parcel and the seeds of Stonewood Farm were sown. Visiting the farm now with its complex of buildings, the lush fields of vegetables, the inviting walking paths, it is hard to imagine what it was like originally.

“Our backgrounds are not rural,” says Holzberg. “We were suddenly faced with this large property and trying to figure out what to do. We started by carving a path through the dense woods. Rather than hiring an architect we decided to contact a landscape architect. Cynthia Rice helped us see the land and learn how to approach it. She walked the entire 15 acres with us, pointing out its natural features, the direction of the sun where there were wet areas, and what trees were worth saving. We cleared and sculpted the land for five years and then figured out how to site the house and the market gardens we are growing on now.”

Walking the land with Holzberg one can see how the dream progressed from simply owning and living on a farm to creating an environment for aspiring farmers and being able to produce food for those who are facing food insecurities. Through a carefully orchestrated plan, Stonewood Farm offers so much on so many different levels. Of the 15 acres, two are being used for small-scale sustainable organic farming, growing healthy vegetables, and feeding the community.

Holzberg and Kopfensteiner have assembled a team of people who understand the mission of Stonewood Farm and are creating a venue in which to use their talents to help those in need.

“We feel so fortunate to have a team of young people devoted to farming. Ellie Brown is our head grower and oversees the day-to-day operation of the market garden and the community outreach projects. She was instrumental in creating The Giving Garden, a vegetable garden for the residents of the Cardinal Hayes Home for Children with developmental disabilities. Assisting her is Andie Mitchell, who is passionate about growing unique specialty crops and totally understands and supports our mission.”

Two other key people are Daniel Meissner, culinary director, who serves as a liaison between the market garden and the farm’s wholesale customers and works in all aspects of the farm’s community outreach. His Sunday harvest dinners have become a sold-out event and he also hosts seasonally inspired cooking classes. Rounding out the group is Eric Visconti, an apprentice who is an aspiring farmer and is learning about the business as well as performing essential duties to complement those of his fellow employees.

While the two did not originally start to create a working farm, they have done exactly that and have contributed so much to their town. They have created a unique mixture of elements to support young farmers, to feed a community, and to address the food insecurities that so many people face. To that end they founded the Stonewood Community Project to carry out their charitable and educational mission.

Says Holzberg, “We created an environment where people can come and work the farm, help create special dinners for local residents, and all of their efforts go to helping others. It will hopefully live on.”

Kopfensteiner agrees and there is no question Stonewood Farm is a very special part of Millbrook.