Family Farm Internship in Oregon

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Deck Family Farm Internship Opportunity Junction City, Oregon – 2018-19

Link to family farm internship application: https://deckfamilyfarm.com/our-story/work-at-deck-family-farm/

General Description: Deck Family Farm is a 320-acre Certified Organic farm located in Western Willamette Valley, near Eugene Oregon. Deck is a diversified operation with the current focus on Pasture Raised Meats, raw dairy, fruit & nuts. We stand on the principles of humane handling, conservation practices including riparian restoration and exclusion, and management intensive grazing.

Deck is a family-oriented farm with an “open gate” policy, meaning the farm is open to visitors any day but Sunday. We strive to be transparent in our practices and to be a conduit for folks to stay connected to their agricultural heritage. 

Deck Family Farm currently consists of the following enterprises: Raw milk dairy: Milking an average of 10-15 cows year-round. The herd is a legal cooperative and owned by shareholders who pay for feed, care and milking of the herd. Butter, cheese, and yogurt along with fresh milk are produced for shareholders. 

Heritage pasture raised hazelnut finished pork. Sow farrow in the barn in the winter. Piglets are fed raw milk from the dairy during weaning and finished on hazelnuts. We produce our pigs birth to finish. 

Organic Pasture Raised Heritage Beef: 100% grass fed and finished Certified Organic Heritage Galloway beef. Our management intensive grazing system has brought greater fertility to our pastures, and rotating crops of grains, legumes and grasses has extended our grazing season to 8-9 months of the year. 

Chickens: We have organic layers for eggs, and roasters for meat. All chickens are out on pasture during the day and housed in “chicken tractors” at night to prevent predation. Chickens are grazed behind, and sometimes alongside, cattle. In addition to their great tasting eggs, the poultry is an integral part of breaking parasite life cycles and bringing more fertility to the pastures. 

Sheep: Our flock size is 150 ewes. We normally lamb in the early spring with babies coming in the months of January-March. Our current breeds are Romney, Dorset, Suffolk and Textile. Much of our grazing is on leased ground off site. 

Garden: We are experimenting with a large home garden, aimed to balance our diets with fresh veggies year-round. The garden is often intern initiated and run. 

Marketing: We direct market to our customers through farmer’s markets, buying clubs, grocery stores and a Full Farm CSA program. All farm interns are required to participate in this level of the business because it is the engine that drives profitability and allows us to stay in business farming. 

We are not a homestead operation but a for-profit business that strives to maintain a reasonable economy of scale. If you are interested in homesteading practices we can provide some animal husbandry training but our program is substantially rooted in what it takes to run an successful business than a subsistence homestead. 

It is our hope that through the years we can partner with other individuals and families committed to the principles of strong work ethics, environmental justice and good business practices. If you think this description fits you, please give us a call. 

Family Farm Internship Starts: Rotating year-round
Family Farm Internship Ends: Rotating year round
Number of Interns: 5
App Deadline: Open
Minimum Length of Stay: 9 months 

Meals: All meals are provided, evening meal is family style, with all community members sharing in rotating cooking and cleaning chores. 

Skills Desired: No experience required, however must have:
Strong work ethic,
Ability to work long hours, 
Ability to follow directions
Willingness to work on communication skills. 
Ability to lift 50lb+, 
Ability/interest in working with a range of cultures and ages.

Family Farm Internship Educational Opportunities: Humane handling, rotational grazing, forage management, irrigation, fencing, milking, spreadsheets, marketing, birthing, community living dynamic, basic gardening, breeding programs and basic treatments, farm equipment, plumbing, electric wire. Visits to neighboring farms, yogurt, butter and cheese making.

Family Farm Internship Stipend: $3200 for 9 month internship, Room and Board included……….. $6,000 for 1 year internship, Room and Board included……….. $10,600 for 2nd year apprenticeship Room and Board Included….. 

Family Farm Internship Housing: Shared intern room or cabins. Kitchen, bathroom and laundry access in main house.

Preferred method Of Contact: Email or phone

Family Farm Internship Details:
Deck Family Farm work day begins at dawn with milking, farm meeting and chores. We break at noon for lunch and resume a few hours before dark for evening chores and milking. The work week is 5 days on 2 days off 8-10 hours/day. We appreciate flexibility depending on the season and work load. 

Accommodations are modest, either shared housing in an intern room or cabin or COB house. 

We are currently offering two types of internships for the 2018/2019 season 

9 Month Apprenticeship with stipend: Apprentices will work in the following areas: Pastured Pork, Raw Jersey Dairy, Beef Herd and Management Intensive grazing, Lamb, Pastured Poultry, and Marketing. We rotate interns through all areas of the farm, but personal interest, aptitude and availability plays a key role in placement. There is a $400/month stipend including room and board for this position. $200/month will be paid at the end of months 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 & 9 and final payment of $1,000 at the end for a total of $3,600 for the entire 9 months. For interns choosing to remain on the farm longer than 9 months, we offer $500/month.

1-3 month commitment: In this position, the first month will be mostly helping out where needed. Expect physically demanding work involving clean up and assisting with chores. The next few months will be training in chores and potentially training in the dairy. Accommodations are mostly tent and barn camping. There is NO STIPEND associated with the 1-3 month position, but it does include room and board. 

Deck Family Farm is strongly rooted in community living and in the spirit of building a sustainable and healthy farming lifestyle we are introducing a companion program to our farm intern program that will have its focus on homemaking and homesteading skills. This will include but not be limited to: meal preparation and clean up, household management, gardening, harvesting, canning and preserving, dairy and cheese making, basically all the skills needed in keeping the home hearth healthy and happy! So if you are someone who is interested in building community, are hardworking and flexible, enjoy hearth holding and want to develop and hone this skill, give us a call.

Home & Family Life: Deck Family Farm most often has a full house of visiting family, friends and employees. Being open to the challenges and joys of a busy house is a must. We share most meals and interns participate with family members in meal prep and clean up. Interns have full use of bathroom, shower and laundry. We ask that folks bathe regularly, change into clean clothes while in the house, and in general practice good hygiene in respect for all household members. Family members of all ages work along side interns and employees, while this can be an asset in terms of gaining a broader vision of farming life it can also bring challenges in terms of space, patience, and learning to work with a diversity of ages. 

We love vegetables and try to have them at every meal, however we believe that animals are an intrinsic part of a balanced healthy food system and for this reason we prefer NOT to accommodate strict vegetarian or vegan diets. 

25362 High Pass Rd. 
Junction City, OR 97448

Contact: Christine Deck
Phone: [Office] 541-998-4697
Email: info@deckfamilyfarm.com 
Website: https://www.deckfamilyfarm.com 

 

Learn more about farming and food jobs and internships, or how to post a job on internship opportunity on beginningfarmers.org at https://www.beginningfarmers.org/internship-and-employment-opportunities/