“This was going to be an agricultural utility building. It was not going to be a venue, it was not going to a classroom—the outdoors is our classroom,” says Mary Mannix, Vice President Board of Directors Natick Community Organic Farm. “Whatever the farm teaches, its mission is education.”
Established in 1974, the Natick Community Organic Farm is a non-profit certified organic farm. It serves 26 communities and features 30 acres of open space while providing farm products and education to patrons of all ages, year-round. Often referred to as just The Farm, it has become THE place for the Natick community to learn. Whether about the food chain, land management, ecosystems, or natural farming skills, the farm has provided Massachusetts youth the life skills to last them into adulthood.
“Having your child go to a place like The Farm where they’re going to explore and do things like look at bugs,” says Mannix. “That’s what makes it such a beloved place. No screens, no cell phones, and the pace is agreeable.”
The centerpiece of The Farm was its functional 200-year-old timber frame cattle barn that dated from 1815. On March 17, 2021, in the early hours of St. Patrick’s Day, the barn was destroyed in a three-alarm fire. The destructive blaze was a devastating blow to the community who didn’t know how The Farm would ever recover.
Whereas the tragic blaze could have torn the community apart, what it did was inspire a coming together through a grassroots fundraising campaign. The support was immediate and massive. Donations poured in locally as well as from surrounding areas. The community responded quickly because the farm had resonated and affected everyone in a positive way.
“In the first 30 hours the Go Fund Me had raised over $280,000 dollars,” says Mannix. “We knew that we had to rebuild. And we knew that we needed a barn because it’s a farm. We wanted to honor the old barn, so it was decided that we were going to build a timber frame barn.”
The community believed that the most appropriate way to pay tribute to the memories of the past as well as the hopes of the future was to replace the structure with a new timber frame barn in the footprint of the original.
“In February 2023 we broke ground on the new barn with the foundation work and other components. On May 1st the frame from New Energy arrived on a flatbed. It was so exciting. The thing that blew me away was that on May 4th you were done. It was like the old barn was being reborn,” shared Mannix.
“The barn at the Natick Community Organic Farm is right at the heart of a pretty special place,” says New Energy Works timber framer Jason Houtenbrink. “It was readily apparent how excited everyone was about the new barn and a steady stream of onlookers crowded by the fence for a better look at what we were doing.”
“For a few days we joined their community and in our down time we chatted with people who had invested their time and money to make this new barn a reality. They shared their enthusiasm and their food with us and made for a raising that was truly unique and exciting.”
Mannix agreed, “The biggest difference was on the skyline, because we now had that beautiful timber frame there. Everybody was on a high. I was sad when the timber frame crew left because it was such an amazing thing. I’d come every day to see the progress that they made, and they were always in good spirits, they were such a wonderful crew.”
As a fitting and final touch and as an enduring tribute to the community members responsible for the new barn, the names of the largest contributors were etched into the Douglas fir beams for perpetuity.
Mannix recalls, “Part of the fundraising campaign was to offer beam engravings to everyone who gave $10,000 or more. But the vast majority of donations were smaller, made by individuals and families that had developed a deep personal connection to the farm over the past four decades.”
Folks flocked to the cause; many had a story to tell about how the farm had changed their lives in a positive way. Some had worked on the farm as kids and were now adults with children of their own and relished the opportunity to give back.
“We also prepared 250 plaques to go on the posts for donors of $1,000 or more,” Mannix says.” It just goes to show the love for The Farm, and how many people gave what they could, and it just added up.”
Architect: Tappe Architects
Engineer: Fire Tower Engineered Timber
Structural Engineer: Cowen Associates
Builder: Sam Soderholm Builders
Photographs: Bob Gothard
