Rebecca Byrd was raised in Boston, Massachusetts, and is a current graduate student at UNC Charlotte. Prior to finishing her undergraduate degree at UNC Charlotte, she attended Queen’s University and Howard University.
Hodges Family Farm - Connor Newman and Kim Hodges Schoch
subject: Farm
Hodges Family Farm, located off Rocky River Road in north-east Charlotte, North Carolina, has been owned and operated by the Hodges family since 1905, and is listed on both the National and North Carolina State Historic Registries.
Friendship Trays - Lucy Bush Carter
subject: Food Distribution
Lucy Bush Carter is the Executive Director of Friendship Trays, a nonprofit organization located in SouthEnd Charlotte. Friendship Trays is the only non-governmental Charlotte-based organization creating and delivering healthy meals to elderly and infirm community members in their homes.
McLeod Organics - T. McLeod
subject: Organic Farming
T. McLeod talks about his experiences in running his own organics business, McLeod Organics, and his transition from farmer to seller in north Mecklenburg county. Mr. McLeod begins by detailing how he originally got into farming, discussing his family’s past and mentioning his early organic gardening experiences with his family.
Avondale Community Giving Garden - Cindy McKenzie
subject: Community Garden
Cindy McKenzie is a member of the Avondale Presbyterian Church and one of the founders of the Avondale Community Giving Garden. She began working on a community garden at Avondale through a connection from Myers Park Baptist Church, who introduced her to Common Grounds Farmstand.
Ferebee Farm - James Ferebee
subject: Livestock
James Ferebee is a 20-year-old white male and owner of Ferebee Farm, which he started in 2011. He began farming commercially in 2015 and raises heritage sheep and pigs, as well as chickens and ducks.
Barbee Farms - Tommy Barbee
subject: Farm
Tommy Barbee was a 58-year-old man at the time of interview, which took place at Barbee Farms in Concord, North Carolina. He was born in Concord, North Carolina in 1960. He was educated in Concord and is employed as a farmer.
The Farm at Dover Vineyard
Elizabeth Anne Dover is a lifetime resident of Concord, North Carolina. Believing she wanted to be a diplomat, Ms. Dover received a degree in medieval Spanish from Davidson College before settling on a career as a winemaker and farmer. She owns The Farm at Dover Vineyard, a produce farm and vineyard located near the Charlotte Motor Speedway. She opened her business in 2009, however her family have farmed in the Charlotte region since the mid-1700s. Ms. Dover provides insight into the challenges and satisfaction of small-scale farming and selling produce in the Charlotte region. She discusses the physical and economic effects of Charlotte’s growth on historic farmlands and describes how public perceptions of small-scale southern farming are at odds with the realities.
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