The Spokane Conservation District says it’s struggling to raise awareness and generate interest among military veterans in a Vets on the Farm program it launched last May to help veterans transition back into civilian life and careers, specifically in agricultural-related fields. 

District Director Vicki Carter says the program is a way of giving veterans “a hand up, not a handout.” 

Currently Vets on the Farm has two interns, with hopes of starting 10 more in the fall.

“Through the network of farms we work with, it’s not difficult to find placements,” says Carter. “The more difficult part is finding the veterans who are interested in participating, but as long as we have veterans and food, we’ll continue to have a need.” 

While interns can start the program with jobs on local farms or at other ag-related businesses, many are encouraged to start with an educational component that’s part of the transition process, and Carter says, “Some veterans just aren’t ready to go back to school yet.”

For those willing to do so, she says, the program offers a 12-week course called Cultivating Success. The course was developed by the Washington State University Cooperative Extension program and is offered as a noncredit class in partnership with Spokane Community College.

The goal of the class is to help vets to find an area of interest within agriculture and create a plan of action to establish a career in that industry. The first Cultivating Success course was held at SCC in the 2014-15 winter quarter. Completing the course earns veterans a certificate of participation and the option of continuing on in an internship or mentorship program, or pursuing further agriculture-related education.

Depending on their individual needs, program participants can decide to begin with an internship rather than to pursue the education portion of the program. Internships and mentorships are available on local farms and ranches, as well as at off-farm, ag-related businesses. Farms and businesses provide the work environment and training, and the conservation district provides the funding. 

For those who wish to start jobs right away, the program also can assist in placing them in open positions that fit their experience level. Carter says those kinds of jobs pay workers from $17 to $20 an hour. Internship positions pay $13 to $18 an hour, depending on the job. “These are not entry-level workers, so we weren’t going to ask them to work for minimum wage,” explains Carter.

SCD hopes Vets on the Farm can be used as a model for other districts or entities that are interested in similar programs. 

“This is kind of our prototype year,” says Carter, who researched how to start the program after watching the documentary “Ground Operations; Battlefields to Farm Fields.” The film details the story of a young veteran who started a blueberry farm in Jacksonville Fla., as a way to helping veterans transition while also educating them and providing them the opportunity for future employment.

Carter says the film also talks about the urgent need to replace American farmers, 50 percent of whom are currently at retirement age. Having worked for the conservation district for 25 years, and as someone with seven family members in the military, including her son, Carter felt a special connection with the film’s message.

“I just felt this incredible need to use the network and resources available to me to start a program like this in our area,” she says. 

Carter began looking into similar programs, attending local job fairs and knocking on doors. 

“I would go to career fairs like ‘Inland Northwest Hiring Heroes’ and see veterans who just looked so discouraged. Many of these people went into the military at age 18 and that structured lifestyle is all they’ve known for years. It’s hard to transition out of that,” she says. 

While the program is designed with a focus on post-9/11 veterans, Carter says, “We’re happy to work with all generations of veterans; the post-9/11 group just happens to be the ones we see the most of. They’re in that age group of younger people just getting back, looking to transition into civilian life again.” 

The conservation district does have a selection process, which Carter describes as not overly strict.

“We usually take a look at their discharge orders, looking at how it was they separated from the military. For example, something like criminal history would be a dissuading factor in our selection process, whereas a medical discharge is something we’re happy to work with them on,” she says. 

Veterans on the Farm is funded through a combination of sponsors and private donations, as well as grants. Program volunteers and interns attend local parades and career fairs, sharing their stories and asking for donations.

“All of the donations go straight back into the program. Those who donate are making an investment in either farming or veterans, sometimes both,” says Carter. Donations can be specific, with investors dictating specifically where they’d like their dollars spent. 

Sponsors of the program include Northwest Farm Credit Services, Cassel Productions, ESI Promos, Ritzville Collectable Car Club, Sure Fit, Blue Sky Marketing, St. John Hardware-Fairfield, Flash’s Auto Body, Bow Tie Farms Inc., and Randy Emtman of Emtman Brothers Farms. Emtman Brothers Farms donated a 1954 International Farmall 300 tractor to Vets on the Farm, which then was restored and serves as a kind of symbol for the program. 

“It’s been painted red, white, and blue, and we take it around to the parades,” says Carter. “It’s a great conversation starter that helps with our goal of outreach, letting people know about the program.”

One of the program’s current interns is a former U.S. Marine who served two tours of duty in Iraq. Craig, who declined to give his last name, says he finds working on farms and ranches therapeutic. 

“You’re always busy, always building or growing something. It’s nice to be able to see the fruits of your labor at the end of the day,” he says.

Craig, who learned of the program through a mentor at the Department of Veteran Affairs, agreed with Carter’s assessment that the program needs to become more widely known.

“I was happy to know there was something like this available. It’d be really nice if more people knew about it,” he says.

Carter says the program does make some of its contacts through other organizations, such as employer support of the Guard and Reserve, Spokane County Veterans’ Services, the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs, Vets Garage and Combat Vet Riders. While there are other organizations that assist veterans in finding employment, Vets on the Farm is the only program specifically for ag-related employment and education. 

Vets on the Farm also provides small loans to veterans who are making a start in farming or an ag-related business. One example is Scott Gail, a former U.S. Army ranger who is working on starting a business in the Spokane area called Regenerative Ag, which would serve to regenerate idle land and repurpose it for livestock or small crop farming. 

Carter says the Agricultural Act of 2014, referred to as “the Farm Bill,” also provides funding for veterans and beginning farmers, some of whom need help finding the right information. 

Carter is optimistic that interest in the program will continue to grow and hopes that veterans, upon finishing the program will be equipped to engage in employment with a new mission and sense of purpose. 

“Currently, we lose 22 veterans to suicide each day, and the unemployment rate for returning veterans is 2 percent higher than the national average,” she says.  

As to future employment, Carter went on to say, “Farming is an economically viable industry. It’s really varied, so it’s hard to give an exact figure of what they’d be making once they have the education and experience. This program is to get them started on that path.” 

The Spokane Conservation District promotes water, soil and forestry conservation and education, as well as ag production.

 The conservation district serves Spokane County, excluding Deer Park, and also works across various county lines through contracts.