NESFI Board

Our Board

2023 Board Members

Gregory Ormsby Mori

President

Gregory’s connection with NESFI began in the 1980s when he served as an intern on the farm after studying sustainable agriculture at UC Davis. He has remained in contact with NESFI throughout a decades-long career that took him away from the valley while working with international development agencies, and from 2014 – 2020, as the Education and Outreach Coordinator for the MU Center for Agroforestry. In the mid-2010s, he served on the original Friends of the Farm committee that began exploring options for the permanent protection and future stewardship of the Lampson Brook Farm site. Back in the valley again since 2020, Gregory practices “forest farming” and grows shiitake mushrooms on a small 27 acre homestead abutting the Quabbin Reservoir. He joined the board of directors in 2021 and is now very pleased to be working again with NESFI in the role of President, supporting the process for the permanent protection of the NESFI site, and steering the organization towards the future and its continued mission of advancing sustainable production and stewardship of small farms and forests across the region.

Lawrence Tucker

Vice President

I currently have three main passions in life that fill up my time and they are hiking, biking, snowmobiling and all of the trail related activities that support these endeavors I have become very involved in helping NESFI achieve its goals for the future. My goal is to help the NESFI community continue its mission and vision into the future in Belchertown.

Grace Adzima

Chairperson

Grace’s family has been farming in Belchertown since 1902. They ran a dairy until the mid-80’s and then transitioned to beef production. The farm also maintains a large forest tract. Grace recently retired from Hampshire College after 42 years. She is on the Board of the Belchertown Farmers Market and was Co-Chair and Program Director of the Belchertown Agricultural Commission from its beginning in 2006 until 2016.

Patricia (Pat) Barry

Treasurer

I am a co-leader the Belchertown 4-H Community Garden Club at Lampson Brook Farm. We donate all our produce to the local food pantries and the Belchertown Senior Center. I am also the chair of the McPherson Garden Committee. For 25 years, I was the director and PATH International instructor for Pioneer Valley Therapeutic Riding Association, a Premiere Accredited Center, teaching horseback riding lessons to children and adults with disabilities. I am excited to be a part of this great team and supporting NESFI going forward.

Sara Weil

Clerk

I am a market gardener at NESFI. My association with NESFI began in the 1990s, when I apprenticed in its farmer training program. Other farming experience includes work on a dairy farm in upstate NY, a large biodynamic farm in New Zealand, and managing the organic produce production at Bramble Hill Farm, in Amherst. I have a Masters degree in Plant & Soil Science from UMass Amherst, with a concentration on nutrient accumulation in vegetable crops. The opportunity NESFI has given me is something I want to share with others who have a commitment to sustainable agriculture.

David Stanley

Board Member

Presently I am a full time physics and horticulture teacher at Tantasqua Regional High School. I am a semi-retired Integrated Pest Management (IPM) consultant. I received part of my IPM training by doing field and lab work for the University of Massachusetts and the University of Connecticut Extension services. I have come back to NESFI after almost 30 years because I want to help farmers and the public find practical and satisfying ways to be more sustainable in their land use. I also want farming and homesteading to be an important part of Massachusetts life, again.

Ed Go

Board Member

I currently operate the White Oak Farm Shop at NESFI, attending to the needs of farmers at Lampson Brook Farm. I assist with tractor work and field preparation for some farmers at NESFI as well as other local farmers.

About

New England Small Farm Institute (NESFI) is a land-based, non-profit organization. It was founded in 1978 by a local citizens’ action group—Women in Agriculture, Food Policy and Land Use Reform—to encourage more sustainable regional agriculture, Our mission is to promote small farm development by providing information and training for aspiring, beginning and transitioning farmers. We maintain an extensive resource collection; produce publications; develop and offer innovative, farmer-guided programs; and advocate for policies that encourage sustainable small-scale agriculture. We seek collaborative program-delivery partnerships with service providers—associates, on-farm mentors, organizations and agencies—throughout the Northeast and nationwide.

We are located in Belchertown, MA, on Lampson Brook Farmstead, a diverse and beautiful 416-acre property that once served as the Belchertown State School Farm. As a land-based organization, we are offered the challenge of “walking our talk”—implementing the alternative tenure options and environmental stewardship practices that we advocate to others. The Farmstead hosts a number of independent small farm businesses and is the site of a developing on-farm training program and business incubator. Visitors are welcome. Our cultural heritage interpretive program celebrates the site’s 250-year farming history and its importance as a National Historic Register working agricultural landscape and state-designated “Special Place of Environmental Significance.”

Our mission is to promote small farm development by providing information and training for aspiring, beginning and transitioning farmers. We maintain an extensive resource collection; produce publications; develop and offer innovative, farmer-guided programs; and advocate for policies that encourage sustainable small-scale agriculture. We seek collaborative program-delivery partnerships with service providers-associates, on-farm mentors, organizations and agencies-throughout the Northeast and nationwide.