Farm Ops

Project Lead: Nina Saeli
Veterans Assistant: Tess Noble Strohm

There are approximately 19 million U.S military veterans, representing less than 10% of the total U.S. adult population. New York State is home to over 800,000 of that military veteran population. Not commonly known and understood, military service members have unique skill sets, which easily transfer to several agricultural or horticulture vocations.

Farm Ops provides the means for veterans, active duty service members, reservists, and members of the national guard to explore agricultural and horticulture avenues. These individuals may be seeking prospects to be their own boss, paths to connect with the soil or with nature, ventures to continue to serve the community in which they work and live, or just opportunities to connect with other veterans. Whatever their interests, Farm Ops aims to serve and support the men and women of NYS, who dedicated their lives in service and support of our nation.

Mission & Vision

To support military service members and veterans who desire to explore and/or pursue agricultural vocations.

  • Provide a framework within which veterans can connect with their community, other military veterans involved in agriculture, and resources including targeted programs, information networks, and organizations oriented towards helping veterans transition to agricultural vocations.
  • Grow the relationships between Farm Ops and the NYS military/veteran communities.
  • Assist in synchronizing the efforts of veteran service/support organizations and farmer-oriented service organizations to gain efficiencies and better align services to farmer veteran needs.

Farm Ops Resources

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Events

Events

Today

  • Farm Tour: Small Scale Farrow to Finish

    299 Yule Corners Rd, Jordanville, NY 13361 299 Yule Corners Road, Jordanville, New York

    Top Notch Livestock & Meats houses boars, barrows, guilts, and sows to support their farrowing to finish swine operation.  This farm tour will focus on the permanent infrastructure and equipment needs for separating various pig operations to facilitate biosecurity, disease control, and production efficiency. Approaches, such as separating pigs by age, production stage, and health […]

  • So You Think You Want to be a Market Gardener

    Centurion Farm, LLC 287 Creek Road, Locke, NY

    The Cornell Small Farms Program is pleased to offer an in-person workshop exploring the ins and outs of market gardening. This event is perfect for aspiring and beginning farmers who want to grow and sell vegetables produced intensively on small acreage.   Whether you are already growing vegetables for yourself and your family or planning for […]

Farm Ops News and Updates

  • Veterans Grow Together at VanKeuren Square

    by

    Rich Mattingly

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    In Syracuse, NY, veterans at the VanKeuren Square apartments are finding healing and connection through the therapeutic power of gardening. Located in the heart of the city, VanKeuren Square is a 50-unit development specifically designed with veterans in mind. Named after Robert Van Keuren of Canandaigua, co-founder of the National Coalition of Homeless Veterans, half…

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  • Improvising, Adapting, and Overcoming on the Farm: Adaptive Equipment Empowers Veteran Farmers

    by

    Rich Mattingly

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    Physically disabled veterans are making significant strides in agriculture by utilizing innovative, adaptive equipment tailored to their unique needs. Farming traditionally demands physical strength, agility, and balance, posing substantial challenges for veterans with physical disabilities. The limited availability of tools designed to address these challenges means many veterans must either engineer custom solutions themselves or…

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  • Farm Ops Supports Veteran Attendance to Maple Confections Academy

    by

    Rich Mattingly

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    The Cornell Maple Program hosted the Maple Confections Academy from September 9-11 at Cornell AgriTech in Geneva, NY. This advanced training provided maple producers with the opportunity to take their maple production to the next level and expand into maple food manufacturing enterprises. During the workshop sessions, participants engaged with Cornell experts on processing methodology,…

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  • Shiitake Mushroom Cultivation Workshop

    by

    Nina Saeli

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      TRUMANSBURG, N.Y. — Nineteen participants gathered at Hawk Meadow Farm for a hands-on workshop on outdoor shiitake mushroom cultivation, learning techniques for growing mushrooms on logs in a natural woodland setting. Led by Steve and Anne Sierigk, Connor Youngerman, and María José Oviedo Ventura, the workshop covered essential aspects of log-based mushroom production, including…

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  • All Family Farm Farmer Veteran Tour

    by

    Rich Mattingly

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    Nate and Misty Allanach of All Family Farm, operate by the philosophy “happier equals healthier”. The Allanachs have cultivated a livelihood centered around raising Berkshire pigs — a heritage breed known for its tenderness and marbling. They allow their pigs to roam freely and forage in open pastures, creating a low-stress, natural environment. This humane…

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See the full archive from Farm Ops

nina-saeli-sfp-staff-headshot

About Nina Saeli

Nina joined the Small Farms Program in 2020 after five years of collaboration with the program as a beginning farmer.  She works to support both current and future farmer-veteran programming efforts. Nina’s transitioning from almost 20 years of military service into the civilian community helps to inform the program on how of some of the physical, social, and psychological challenges veterans face. Nina’s work aims to help transitioning veterans find solace in aspect of agriculture that supports that veterans health, self sustainability, community inclusion or other life goals.

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About Tess Noble Strohm

Tess joined the Small Farms Program in 2025 as a veterans project assistant with Farm Ops. Her love of the outdoors began by hunting for insects in her Brooklyn backyard as a child. After studying environmental science at Bard College, she worked on a small farm in the Hudson Valley, and then went on to study soil science at Colorado State University. Tess moved to Ithaca, NY, to work as a Research Support Specialist at the Cornell Soil Health Lab before joining the Farm Ops team where she helps veterans thrive in agriculture and ensures they have the tools and resources they need to succeed.

Subscribe for Updates and Opportunities

The Farm Ops SITREP is a monthly email digest built for farmer veterans. Emails will share upcoming events and training/educational opportunities, external news, curated agricultural articles, stories about fellow farmer veterans across New York State, and more.

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