Connection
This month in the Gathering Basket, I thought it was time to share a little more myself. Many of you know me personally: friends, family, colleagues. Many of you I've never met. I value all of you, and we wouldn't be Meeting House Farm without you. So in that spirit: a proper introduction, or re-introduction as the case may be.
I'm Emily. I founded Meeting House Farm in 2018 with my husband, Scott, and our identical twin boys, Aiden and Landen (now 19 and off at university). I'd been dreaming of an herb farm down a long dirt road and instead, we ended up on a 1731 farm in a coastal Maine town, sitting squarely in the middle of a neighborhood of suburban homes. What I didn't realize at the time was how necessary urban farms really are: a food oasis for humans, insects, and small creatures alike. We now lovingly tend our 2.5 acres, feed our neighbors and family, and keep homes for many creatures, great and small.
My own family is European, which is why those are primarily the herbs I write and teach about. They're my lineage.
My herbal education began years before the farm, studying first with Deb Soule of Avena Botanicals, then Jillian Twisla of Hyllantree, both extraordinary teachers. My practice has also been shaped by my dear friend, Mischa Schuler, and Richo Cech (from afar). Growing up in 1980s health food co-ops, on small farms, in a homesteading family where food was medicine: that upbringing is the root of everything I value, for my family and for this farm.
I was born in Virginia and spent much of my growing up years in Colorado. I went to university in Williamsburg, VA and graduated with a degree in International Relations (yup… not even close to farming. The minor in economics is useful though.)
Before the farm, I worked in corporate America in financial technology, where I was quite sure I was wasting my life. Looking back now, I see that so much of what I learned there was invaluable in building Meeting House Farm. I would not have created the national network for small herb farmers without it. It's reassuring to find purpose where you once thought there was none.
Fast forward to today: the boys are in college, we have a wonderful farm team, and I find myself spending most of my winters out on Monhegan Island with our big German shepherd, Rahlo, and with Scott when he can arrange a ferry ride. The mail boat runs twice a week in winter, sometimes less depending on the weather. You might find me substituting in the classroom, meeting the ferry for the mail, or working from our family cottage on the collaborative and, hopefully soon, on my book. Monhegan is my favorite place on earth, and I am always deeply grateful to be there.
My favorite thing to do right now is make soap. It is such a satisfying process. I'm collaborating with an artist and sculptor friend from Edison Studio who created a hand-molded soap mold in the form of rosa multiflora, the rose hips I harvest each fall out on Monhegan. I take these rose hips, infuse them in oils, and blend them with salt water from Monhegan and milky oat creme from my parents' farm to make small works of soap magic. Each time I pour a batch I find myself completely enthralled, checking on the soap many times a day, watching it cure. It takes at least six weeks. I love every minute of it.
I'm also currently spending a good part of my time studying in an intensive program to become a certified coach. Part of that program is practicing coaching others for more than 50 hours, and I would be honored to work with you. If you are navigating life changes or working through something, farming-related or otherwise, please consider reaching out. As a student I'm offering sessions at $25, or on scholarship if that would be helpful. I have 50 hours available between now and November. Book your session here.
A few ways to connect, if you're in Maine:
- Farm visits (Scarborough) - The farm isn't technically open to the public due to zoning, but Friends of the Farm can make appointments to walk the gardens (and get free shipping all year). We also hold a few "yard sales" each year; the next is June 4–6, with a Solstice Yard Sale planned for December (dates TBD).
- Farm stand (Scarborough) - A donation-only, Venmo-only cornucopia from our organic market gardens at 35 Hunnewell Road, running from Summer Solstice through the end of summer.
- Visit Monhegan - Want to experience island life? We rent our family home June through September, and last-minute openings do come up. https://vrbo.onelink.me/ItNz/y9e90woy
- Common Ground Fair (Unity) - In celebration of the fair's 50th year, we'll be there with a booth. Please come say hello. Learn more about the fair here.
As for what's next: I'll be continuing Meeting House Collaborative work (there can never be too many herb farms), more work with Rosa multiflora from Monhegan, a fall apothecary craft apprenticeship covering extracts, oils, tisanes, candles and more, and a beginning herb farmer training on the farm planned for Summer 2027. The list feels abundant and joyful, which is exactly how I like it.
Thank you for being here and for supporting this work. We truly wouldn't be here without you, and I mean that not as a cliché but as a fact. Getting the highest quality local herbs into the hands of apothecaries, herbalists, and herb lovers everywhere, while supporting small farmers in doing what they love and making a sustainable living: that is the work, and I feel so lucky to be doing it.
I hope you feel you know me a little more.
With gratitude,
Emily