Birdsfoot Farm Internship

As a Farm Hand at Birdsfoot Farm in Canton, New York, I worked alongside the farm owner, Dulli, contributing to all aspects of daily farm operations. My responsibilities included planting, weeding, harvesting, produce maintenance, washing and packaging vegetables, preparing CSA shares, and helping manage the Birdsfoot stand at the Canton Farmers' Market. Through these responsibilities, I gained hands-on experience in sustainable agriculture while developing the physical endurance, responsibility, and problem-solving skills required to maintain a working farm.

Beyond practical farming skills, this internship gave me a deeper understanding of the relationship between agriculture, history, and community. Birdsfoot Farm has supported a living-working community for nearly fifty years, and experiencing its traditions and collaborative way of life allowed me to see how sustainable agricultural practices preserve both cultural heritage and local food systems. Working closely with Dulli and other community members strengthened my communication and collaboration skills while demonstrating the importance of shared responsibility in sustaining a community.

As a History and Art & Art History major, this experience enriched my understanding of how agricultural practices reflect broader cultural and historical systems. It reinforced my interest in exploring the connections between people, place, and material culture while providing a meaningful foundation for my future academic research and career interests in curatorial, archival, and educational work.