Saturday found me working as the new Event Coordinator at Friendship Farms. My dear friend, Nancy, has asked me to join her in her adventures at her home in Schoolcraft, Michigan. Nancy owns the Garden Gate Cafe in Shipshewana, IN and also had a store there called the White Picket Fence which no longer is open. Nancy is one of the first people I met when I moved to Michigan seven years ago. I frequented her store often and ended up working there part-time as well as assisting her in barn sales from the farm. I'm looking forward to seeing where this new road leads me.
Friendship Farm was built in 1840. It is 170 years old. As a reference point, Abraham Lincoln was president when the home was built. Schoolcraft, MI has been designated as part of the Underground Railroad helping people enroute to Canada.
The home has 12 rooms and hosts three barns on four acres. Nancy and her husband, Doug, take their stewardship of the farm very seriously, conserving and restoring different parts of it yearly.
Often when I am out here I try to imagine what it must have been like in it's infancy. Off the living room is a "marrying door" that leads outside as well as a "burying door" off of the dining room which reflect the 19th century customs. Truly if these walls could talk, what a story they would tell.
The weddings that have been held here in the past were family and friends of Nancy and Doug's and recently they decided to open their home to the public for weddings and other events. How fortunate for the rest of us that they did, because the grounds are perfect for hosting events.
Couples marry near the gazebo and then have appetizers in the barn. One of the weddings I attended here as a guest, had a photo booth on one side of the barn and a farmer's market decor on the other side where the guests had appetizers.
Tomorrow I attend my first meeting for wedding vendors where I get to meet the local companies and I'm very excited. For today, I get to sew! My machine is back from repairland and running at top notch speed. Have a blessed day!
Hugs,
