Dris, this is located between Valpo and Michigan City, Indiana. Here is the email the ag teachers were sent. Didn't know if one of your past students maybe could make a go of this and create a "satellite " farm from your current venture.

Greetings!
I just wanted to throw this out to the Indiana Ag Ed family. At the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore in Porter, Indiana there exists an 80 acre historic farm that is currently up for "lease / rental" for at least a 10 year period. The RFP describing the site is on located at the following link:
http://concessions.nps.gov/docs/news/MWR/ChellbergFarmRFP.pdf

I have worked as a seasonal park ranger at the Dunes for the 28 seasons and have been part of the Duneland Harvest Festival (~14,000 visitors during the third weekend in September) and the Maple Sugar Time festival (~4,ooo visitors during the first two weekends in March). I heard through the grapevine that Purdue has explored being involved in the site in some capacity.

The park at one time utilized the site as a pseudo "Living History" farm and annually pumped up to $250,000 of their budget into the site by employing a local farmer who worked the site with horses and historic machinery, kept a small flock of poultry, some hogs, some draft horses, a goat or two, and occasionally a cow.

The local community was initially up in arms when the park decided to cease operating it as a working farm as many families and organized groups spent many hours there hiking the trails and participating in the public programs, group programs (you can see these programs as teacher lesson plans by visiting the teachers link at www.nps.gov/indu ) and just being "casual" visitors.

My purpose in emailing you is just to see if there is any interest in working together to get involved with the site to tell the story of Indiana Agriculture here and possibly turn it into a money making venture for Indiana Ag Ed, Indiana FFA, or possibly even National FFA. It could even be one of the many stops for FFA Chapters when on their way to the National FFA Convention each year.

Feel free to contact me with any questions, concerns, or comments.

Take care

Bill Smith
Westville, IN FFA Advisor
219-331-3704

Thanks so much I will look into it. Great idea!

Our interest would be providing equipment and horses and providing training for the possible FFA groups interested through www.heavyhorseequipment.com.

I think the ag teachers are dreaming. Once the newness wears off, students would quit going. I was thinking if you had a past student or two that were real committed but no land available, if they could put together a resume/package of intent, they might be able to utilize this in the way you do, sort of like a satellite farm, don't know if the seasons would be enough different to allow same equipment line or not. Just thought of you when I read it, do with as you think best.

Jon

Very hard to keep something like this going. It is the reason the park itself discontinued the program. Very expensive to meet guidelines set forth in proposal.