F E AT U R E S TO RY
From Camouflage to Black and Yellow By Alex Wilson, ’22
UCM Farm Hosts Beekeeping Program for Military Veterans Every day for eight years, Santiago Valdez woke up early to conduct important procedures as a mechanic for the 509th Maintenance Group at Whiteman Air Force Base in Knob Noster, Missouri. Today, he still wakes up at the break of dawn, not to maintain planes and other aircraft, but to manage, grow and create products for his home goods company, Raw Buzz. Santiago and his wife, UCM alumna Julie (Kryshchendyuk) Valdez, ’17, sell high-quality handmade goods ranging from honey to wax candles to soaps made with goat milk from Julie’s family farm. Santiago and Julie’s participation in the Heroes to Hives program last spring and summer provided them with the chance they needed to learn about the craft of beekeeping in order to expand their blossoming business. Heroes to Hives is a free program providing the opportunity for U.S. veterans from all branches of the military, their spouses and dependents over age 18 to learn the art of beekeeping. Launched by U.S. Army veteran Adam Ingrao in 2016 at the Michigan State University Extension, the program has since expanded to training sites in Minnesota, Nebraska and Missouri. In Missouri, UCM collaborates with the MU Extension to provide resources and land for an apiary at Mitchell Street Farm in Warrensburg.
Photo by Lauryn Morrow, UCM undergraduate student
12
Spring 2022 | www.ucmfoundation.org/magazine
