Homestead Internship Position available at Family Farm in Missouri

Filled / Expired

7 Springs Farm

Email

Email Address Hidden

Location

Mansfield, MO

Job Type

Full Time

Salary

After 90 day trial

Date Posted

July 30, 2021

Housing Offered

Yes

Experience

0-2 yrs

About the Farm
We have an internship program with a position available right now on our 700 acre family farm & homestead in South Central Missouri. We are a very diversified operation with a large garden, 100+ beef cattle, a family dairy cow, hogs, sheep, goats, chickens, and 40 horses. We run several businesses on the farm including boarding horses, selling grassfed/pastured meat, operating a feed business, and running a sustainable lumber business. Our personal residence is also off-grid.

About the Position
This internship opportunity is perfect for anyone who wants to learn about sustainable farming, raising a variety of animals, growing your own food, and maybe would like to have a small farm or homestead of your own one day. The ideal candidate will be eager to learn, loves being outdoors, doesn't mind hard work, is willing to get up early, asks questions when you're not sure, and works well alone and with others.

On our farm, you will be able to learn about caring for cattle, horses, hogs, sheep, goats & chickens. Daily chores will include feeding, watering & checking on the well-being of the animals (with the help and guidance of the owners & apprentices.) Our goal is for you to become knowledgeable and efficient at taking care of the farm animals so you can possibly have your own one day.

Other farm related tasks you will assist with during the day include fencing, caring for the pastures, practicing rotational grazing for the livestock, putting up hay, and gardening.

We have a large family garden and orchard that everyone on the farm can get produce from. Helping with planting, watering, weeding, harvesting & processing the produce is another set of tasks you will participate in and learn how to do if you ever want to have your own garden.

Housing & meals are provided. We have a 1 bedroom 1 bath barn apartment with a small kitchen. All utilities are taken care of by us. We take care of lunch & dinner Monday – Saturday. We can help provide breakfast foods. We have a family milk cow, so you will get lots of fresh milk. We have egg laying hens and you will have plenty of farm fresh eggs. We also raise and consume most of our own meat. Beef, chicken, pork & lamb.

We stay busy most of the week with breaks for lunch and other random breaks depending on the weather. Sundays are the slow day, where we just do chores and that's it. We farm by the seasons. So in the summer, we have long days, get up early, take a break in the heat of the day if we need to, and sometimes work late. Spring and fall are fairly normal. Winter is the balance to summer with short days, where we get up later with the sun, and finish work early when it gets dark.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities Required

Previous farm, animal handling & gardening experience is helpful but not required.
Capable of operating equipment including pickups, pulling trailers, and driving tractors is preferred but not required.
Able to safely perform ranch-related duties including 10-12hr days (sometimes) in hot/cold outdoor conditions.
Not scared around large livestock.
Must have a strong work ethic and ability to work independently and with others.
Must have the ability to listen to and follow directions without me having to hold your hand all day. We have no problem showing you how to do something and working with you while you learn but don’t want to babysit, so listening and self-motivation are a must!
Must be able to safely exert a considerable amount of physical effort to stoop, crouch, and lift as much as 50 pounds.
Valid Drivers License with clean driving record

Things to Consider
No experience is necessary for this internship opportunity but is always welcome. We are looking for someone eager to learn & who has a dream of farming/ranching/homesteading one day or partnering with us or someone like us after they’ve gained the skills they need. We have had people start as interns and now are homesteading with us and have created an income from the farm! If you want to have your own homestead one day but just don’t know where to start, this just might be the perfect opportunity for you!

This is a long-term internship in sustainable farming. We ask that any applicant be prepared to stay here for 1 year. The reason for this is we feel it’s necessary to go through all the seasons to see how practices change with weather, and what the challenges will be.

We have a 90 day trial period. Within this period you will learn how to do all of the chores and learn about how the farm operates. We offer a stipend that starts after this period, which will be different for everyone. There may also be alternative income streams depending on your skills and interests.

How to Apply

Please send your resume with references to our email address.

Please include a phone number. We conduct several phone interviews and possibly a video interview for candidates.

7 Springs Farm - Missouri