Beginning Farmer of the Year: Vanessa Quinones

Vanessa Quiñones, the dynamic owner-operator of The Victory Garden Farm, joined Angelic Organics Learning Center’s farmer training community in 2014 as a Stateline Farm BeginningsⓇ participant. In 2021, the public voted her as Beginning Farmer of the Year, an award presented by Routes to Farm, an alliance of farmer training organizations across Illinois and Indiana.

We strive to leave the land better than how we found it by increasing biodiversity and building strong sustainable systems. We supply our local community, friends and family with the healthiest, best tasting food possible.

The Victory Garden Farm sits on five beautiful acres in Fredonia, Wisconsin. The farm’s mission statement reads, “We strive to leave the land better than how we found it by increasing biodiversity and building strong sustainable systems. We supply our local community, friends and family with the healthiest, best tasting food possible.”

Since its start in 2015, the farm has secured multiple certifications, with a clear and continuing commitment to sustainable and organic practices. The Victory Garden Farm is USDA-Certified Organic through Midwest Organic Services Association, and certified Animal Welfare Approved through A Greener World.

The farm operates a successful farm store, with products that have been featured on many local restaurant menus. Vanessa understands the need to continually pivot, and the viability of her farm grows each year. In 2021, despite the constraints of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, The Victory Garden Farm doubled in size and hired its first two employees. Her latest accomplishment? Vanessa went on vacation at the end of the 2021 growing season – something all farmers know as a feat to behold.

Vanessa is an excellent role model to beginning farmers. At the height of the COVID pandemic, when many farmers were struggling to restructure to meet increased demand, Vanessa launched the first REKO ring in the state of Wisconsin as a way to partner with and support other local producers and feed her community. Her impact came full circle when she returned to Stateline Farm BeginningsⓇ as a farmer panelist and mentor to an aspiring farmer participant.

Danielle Cantrell, founder of Ever Favor Farms, was Vanessa’s mentee during the 2021 Stateline Farm BeginningsⓇ program. Danielle says, “As a fellow first-generation BIPOC female farmer, I selected Vanessa as my mentor because I admired her determination and perseverance in building her farm from the ground up. Vanessa freely, generously, and enthusiastically offered her time, advice, and support to me during the mentorship, and continues to do so to this day. She embodies the spirit of community because she wants to see other farmers succeed.”

Vanessa masterfully balances her passion with the realities of the unforgiving trade. When asked what advice she would give to her younger self, Vanessa says, “Start small! Do not take on too many enterprises at once.” Great advice from a farmer who has learned to roll with the punches.

Keep up with Vanessa’s work by following The Victory Garden Farm on Facebook and Instagram.

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about the Award

The Beginning Farmer of the Year award is sponsored by the collaborating Farmer Alliances in Routes to Farm, serving beginning farmers across the greater Chicago foodshed. Routes to Farm is generously supported by Searle Funds at The Chicago Community Trust. ​