About Blooming Health Farms
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What Does It Mean To Grow Food With A Purpose?
Many of our neighborhoods struggle to find food and the young people living here are more at risk to commit crimes. One out of five people in Weld County lack access to food and we have some of the highest youth crime rates in the country. People are hungry, which leads to risky behavior. We get kids off the street by training them to grow the fish and food we need to eat. We believe agriculture offers the best chances to create the future leaders of our community.
Our aquaponics farms combine proven education programs and job training. We’ll use trailblazing technology and techniques to produce food which empowers at-risk kids to develop social and life-science skills while on the job. The farm currently uses an indoor vertical cropping system to constantly produce locally grown food, year-round. We do this using 90% less land and water than soil farms. Our food is better than organic because it is wholesome, fresh, grown the way nature intended and uses the best tools available to help grow at risk youth. What we are really doing here at Blooming Health Farms is growing food and growing people.”
How We Got Started
Two guys were brought together by a shared vision to change the way we approach mental health and nutrition
Sean, molecular biologist and systems engineer, has the know-how and aquaponic experience that drives our sustainable crop production.
Ryan, a nationally certified counselor, provides mental health expertise that turns cutting edge agriculture into a criminal justice revolution.
Both Ryan and Sean came from troubled pasts, and want to use their journeys to advance kids who walk similar paths while impacting the broken systems that hinder healing and recovery.
Our Mission
To transform the Northern Colorado community through accessible nutrition, mental health support, education, and reduction of crime.
To achieve this, Blooming Health farms will:
- Provide affordable and nutritious food for the local community.
- Provide a local community wellness center with mental health services and STEM education.
- Design and implement a flexible cropping model that can be used anywhere, by anyone.
- Use less land, water, energy and labor than soil agriculture.
- Make a profit while being sustainable and environmentally conscious.
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Our Goals
In order to accomplish our goals, we shall combine job training, education and CBT to further reduce recidivism. Blooming Health Farms plans to employ at-risk youth at a competitive wage to operate an indoor, year-round produce and fish farm.
Blooming Health Farms
Leadership
Sean Short
Director of Operations
Sean Short holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Molecular Biosciences and Biotechnology from the University of Hawai’i, and is pursuing graduate education in Systems Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. Mr, Short has extensive experience in designing, building, and operating successful aquaponic farms, conducting wet chemical tests to ensure safety and quality of water, and marketing products to commercial clients.
Ryan Smith
Director of Programs
Ryan Smith holds a Master’s Degree in Clinical Counseling from the University of Northern Colorado. Mr. Smith has extensive experience in crisis management and specializes in the treatment of grief, trauma, and severe mental illness. Ryan has developed educational and mental health programming for various organizations and purposes, and has been a Northern Colorado business owner for several years.