Our Farm Story

 Our farm crew members have dedicated our lives to practicing symbiotic relationships with the land to meet the needs of the community. For us, food is the foundation of that relationship. 

Caleb and I met back in 2015, each with a few years of agriculture under our belts. Caleb got his start W.W.O.O.F.ing (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) around the US in 2011. He then came back to West Bend, his hometown, and completed a farming internship at Wellspring Inc in 2012. From there, he started his own poultry business called Blue Wolf Farm and worked as a land manager for a local couple. By 2016, he was ready to take farming in a new direction and returned to serve as Farm Manager for Wellspring Inc. He served in this role until 2020, when the pressures and instability of the pandemic made it clear that it was time to retire the nonprofit’s farming and education programs. The board at the time created an incubator farm program, which offered the opportunity for Caleb to form his own LLC and continue growing on the Wellspring campus. He happily accepted, and thus, Winterspring LLC was born. Caleb’s role as farm owner and operator includes everything from field management, customer service, farmer’s markets, bookkeeping, and greenhouse management.

I grew up in Springfield, Illinois, where I got my start volunteering for community garden projects around the city. I also spent time farming in Japan through W.W.O.O.F. Eventually, when I returned, I was hired as a school garden coordinator for a nonprofit that was called genHkids, where I worked for 3 years. At that point I decided I was ready to explore farm-scale agriculture outside of an urban setting. I spent 5 months WWOOFing around the midwest in 2015, which is how I met Caleb. By the end of that season, we decided I would settle in Wisconsin to farm together. I spent another season working on a mushroom farm up in northern WI before serving as Youth Program Coordinator for Victory Garden Initiative in Milwaukee. When a position for Education Coordinator became available at Wellspring Inc, I took it in fall of 2017 and served until 2020. In 2021, we had our son Allilium. As new parents, our commitment to the future of food deepened even more. Currently, my role at Winterspring farm includes herb production, field crew work, greenhouse work, farmer’s markets, deliveries, and marketing.

Nowadays, Riveredge Nature Center owns the Wellspring campus where Winterspring is currently based out of. They have graciously continued our contact as an incubator farm through 2025. At that point, we will transition to growing on the new land that Caleb and I purchased from Brandon and Tammera Dykema, former owner-operators of Dominion Valley Farm in Allenton, WI.

Together, Caleb and I bring over two decades of combined experience to our work, and each season we build on that. Continuing education is essential in this field, which is constantly adapting to the rapid changes in climate, technology, and the needs of the people.

Each year, we are privileged to work with a strong crew of folks who find their calling in organic agriculture. From our staff to our workershares, everyone brings a little bit of themselves to their role. Each are able to take the experience they gained into their future endeavors, and many come back to work year after year. For information on job opportunities, feel free to visit our Jobs Page.

Much like you, our journey began when we sought access to nourishing food that didn’t compromise healthy soil, air and water.

Local food means more than just local distribution. It’s about building a resilient network of growers to foster sustainable food access for all.

We pledge to work to the best of our ability to grow a culture of local food that ensures that everyone’s needs are equitably met.

We are honored and excited to do the work that we do.

In love and solidarity,

Roxanne, Caleb, and the Winterspring Farm Crew