BayouLife Magazine August 2020

Page 92

NEIGHBORS CRAZ Y ABOUT

COOKIES

B E I N G A G O O D N E I G H B O R can often evoke images of extending friendly greetings, gifting homemade pies, or even graciously dog sitting on occasion, but for Meryl Kennedy Farr, Chairman and CEO of Neighbors, it meant coming together with a group of investors and business owners to save a local failing business. In August of 2016, Neighbors acquired the assets of Pine Valley Foods, Inc, which had been in the fundraising industry producing cookie dough for over twenty years. The story is one of “persistence, grit, hard work, dedication, and relentlessness in the face of adversity,” says Farr, adding, “It’s also a story of neighbors coming together to help others.” At the time, the purchase saved many local jobs. Now, their tubs of cookie dough help support communities all over the country. “We can all give back and in return, life is a little sweeter.” The youngest of four daughters, Farr was born and raised in the “rural village” of Mer Rouge, Louisiana. After completing a degree in International Affairs with a minor in Spanish from the University of Georgia, she opted to return home to assist her father in the family rice business. At the mere age of twenty-one, she successfully oversaw the start-up and development of Kennedy Rice, Mill, LLC. Envisioning the need to bring sustainable and organic products into the retail rice market, Farr and her sisters launched their own branded rice products. As president and owner, she successfully engineered its implementation, and currently packages farm to table rice for their brand 4Sisters Rice, formerly known as KenChaux Rice.

A R T I C L E B Y VA N E L I S R I V E R A P H O T O G R A P H Y B Y K E L LY M O O R E C L A R K


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