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NORTHFIELD, Minn. (WCCO) — An idea born during the pandemic — when state and county fairs were shut down — has turned into a newly-opened agritourism venue in Northfield called Windy Willow Farm.
The farmland has been in Colleen Almen’s family since the 1954. Now, a section of it has a been reinvented to evolve with the times.
“We know the small family farms don’t really make it anymore. So with the traditional row crops, we weren’t going to be able to keep the land,” Colleen said.
She has an extensive background as an educator in 4H. The mission of her new agritourism facility: to educate kids about where their food and clothes comes from.
“I see people go through the State Fair and the barns up there, and they don’t know the difference between a pigeon and a goose,” she said.
Colleen’s family of four broke ground just last August. They put together this massive project almost entirely by themselves. A transformation, from a field to an event space.
“It’s completely crazy to think that last year, I was out here baling hay,” she said.
Colleen’s daughter Ashley manages the store at Windy Willow, working on the same land she where she grew up.
(credit: CBS)
“I feel like it feels more homey actually, and now we’re not surrounded by a field. We have all this stuff up here which is really exciting,” Ashley said.
That includes a racetrack and a petting zoo — mixing fun and education.
“I don’t think there’s anything around real close that does this to this scale,” Colleen said.
It’s a unique spectacle with a determined leader.
“We’re helping here every day, but this is all my mom’s idea,” Ashley said. “So it’s really nice like to make her vision come true, and with all like the time she put into 4H and helping us kids, like she finally deserves to have something that is hers.”
Carrying on the family business, with a twist for the next generations.
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Source: CBS Minnesota
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