Dear Governor O'Malley, We wish to bring a timely issue to your attention that would help Maryland lead the

nation on farm education, farmer training, farm-to-school programs, and a sustainable and environmentally sensitive farming future. We are aware of your work on the No Child Left Inside initiative and your support of the Jane Lawton Farm to School law. We also know of your commitment to strengthen agriculture in Maryland, while leading on environmental issues that improve the health of the Chesapeake Bay. Brickyard Educational Farm provides a foundation for each of those pillars in its mission by connecting children with the food, land, and water that sustain them. The Farm brings together farm education programs for children and training programs for beginning farmers, and integrates sustainable, organic, and environmentally responsible farming practices. The farm-to-school field trips offer lessons that fulfill Maryland state curriculum requirements, including the new No Child Left Inside environmental literacy requirements. In addition, Brickyard Educational Farm is working with community stakeholders to bring significant quantities of fresh produce from the farm directly to public school cafeterias, as outlined in Marylands Jane Lawton Farm to School Act. Brickyard Educational Farm will also house a farm incubator program by providing landless beginning farmers with land close to an urban center, shared equipment, shared labor, a builtin market, the opportunity to run their own farming operation, and experienced farmer mentors. Upon completion of the program, Brickyard Educational Farm hopes to work with existing local land-link agencies that match aspiring farmers with affordable farmland. The last component addresses food security through a seed-saving and production operation, managed organically on this land for the past 32 years. This effort preserves genetic diversity and helps save from extinction the unique, locally adapted varieties that may be needed to counter constantly evolving pests, diseases and climate change. Over the last three decades using this land as his base, organic farmer Nick Maravell has been very involved in promoting sustainable farming in Maryland and in the nation, and he is often asked to testify in Congress for his environmentally responsible practices. He helped found many organizations such as Future Harvest Chesapeake Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture, the Maryland Organic Food and Farming Association, and the Maryland Small Farm Cooperative. In 2011, the USDA Secretary Vilsack appointed Mr. Maravell to a five-year term on the National Organic Standards Board, recognizing how Mr. Maravells valuable experience could contribute to regulating policy for the $30 billion a year organic industry. Unfortunately, Maryland is at risk of losing Brickyard Educational Farm. This 20 acre farm, located on public school land, is slated to be leased for private gated pay-for-play soccer fields and parking lots. With the average age of a farmer being 57 years old, we need more programs like Brickyard Educational Farm to stimulate interest in agriculture and to train the next generation. Maryland has a large agricultural economy, is one of the most environmentally responsible states, and is leading the nation in education. We are weeks away from losing what would be a nationally renowned program that would put Maryland at the forefront of environmental, outdoor, agricultural education through training programs and farm-to-school curriculum. There are no other programs or farms in the nation that integrate all of the elements described above. Please do what you can to save this valuable asset so Maryland can become a national model in this growing movement to revitalize local food and farming in America. Sincerely,

Maryland Sierra Club David OLeary, Chair Audubon Naturalist Society Dolores Milmoe, Policy Director Environment Maryland Tommy Landers, State Director Maryland Public Interest Research Group Jenny Levin, State Director Maryland Coastal Bays Program Dave Wilson, Executive Director Maryland Organic Food and Farming Association Holly Budd, President Washington Youth Garden Anna Benfield, Education Director Growing Power Will Allen, Founder, CEO, MacArthur Fellow Growing Soul Jessica Weiss, Executive Director Eastern Shore Land Conservancy Robert Etgen, Executive Director Beyond Pesticides Jay Feldman, Executive Director Farm Food Freedom Coalition Montgomery County Civic Federation Carole Ann Barth, President Montgomery County Sierra Club Alvin Carlos, Chair Maryland Small Farm Cooperative Lee Royer, President

Montgomery Victory Garden Gordon Clark, Coordinator Rodale Institute Mark Coach Smallwood, Executive Director DC Farm to School Lauren Biele, Executive Director Maryland No Child Left Inside Coalition Allyson Gibson Montgomery Countryside Alliance Caroline Taylor, Executive Director Brickyard Coalition Inc. Curt Uhre, President Brickyard Citizens Association Charles Dorian, President Citizens Association of River Falls Keith Williams, President West Montgomery County Citizens Association Ginny Barnes, Environmental Chair Kayam Farms and Pearlstone Retreat Center Jakir Manela, Executive Director Maryland Agricultural Education Foundation George Mayo, Executive Director Slow Food DC Kathryn Warner, President Green America Alisa Kravitz, President/CEO Central Farm Markets Mitchell Berliner, Co-Founder, Member of Maryland Food Industry Hall of Fame