Today we’d like to introduce you to Luke Brown.
Hi Luke, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
In 2014, after my time serving in the United States Air Force, my wife and I moved to South Carolina to start a new chapter in our lives.
In 2017, we purchased a piece of land at the corner of Sitton Mill and Sitton Shoals, originally intending it to be a hunting property. Little did we know that this land would soon become the heart of our future. The more time we spent there, the more we fell in love with it, eventually deciding to build our home.
Once settled in, our initial hunting aspirations resurfaced. To attract deer, we planted a large orchard with peach, apple, pear, cherry, persimmon, chestnut, and mulberry trees. We also planted blueberries, blackberries, muscadines, and grapes to further draw in the deer and wildlife. What was originally meant to be a simple planting quickly turned into a much larger endeavor than I expected. The learning curve was steep, and managing it became almost a full-time job in itself! What started as a plan to simply plant and leave it soon evolved into a full-on gardening project to attract more wildlife. As my wife will confirm, I never do anything on a small scale.
We then planted a 5-acre garden, which produced an abundance of crops. Our kids and their friends eagerly picked from the orchard and garden, and they even started selling eggs at the end of our driveway. They were thrilled to keep all their earnings. What began as a small venture quickly gained traction, but I wasn’t entirely comfortable with them standing by the roadside. So, together, we built a farm stand—which we later converted into a bridal suite. The stand grew in popularity, and we eventually earned USDA Certification and became an SC Certified farm stand. This experience taught our kids valuable life lessons about hard work and managing their little “empire.” As our customer base expanded, many of our older clients shared stories about the property’s rich history.
After hearing countless stories and diving into research, we discovered that the land had a fascinating past. It once housed a gold mine. People often ask if I’ve found any gold, and I always tell them the same thing: if I had, I wouldn’t be out here fixing my own fences! Later, the farm was owned by the Sitton family, after whom our road is named. The Sittons ran a flour mill on the property, and remnants of it can still be found near Coneross Creek. In its final chapter before we acquired it, the farm was a well-known fish hatchery and restaurant—although the restaurant was bulldozed before we purchased the property.
In 2019, we expanded by acquiring the land across from our main property. Our goal was to transform this once unusable land into pasture. After years of hard work and setbacks, it has now become the perfect location for our venue, featuring a picturesque pasture and pond.
At first, we had a different vision in mind. With my background in agriculture, we ventured into agri-tourism, offering a petting zoo, wagon rides through the farm’s history, and educational lessons about farming. However, unforeseen circumstances forced us to rethink our approach once again.
I’ve always had a dream of creating a wedding venue, and with the love and support of my family, that dream became a reality. McLadke Orchards Venue was born. My vision has always been to provide an affordable place for families to celebrate their dreams, no matter where this journey takes us. This commitment to our community will never change.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I hate to say, nothing about owning a small business, businesses, or farming includes a smooth road.
With the help of my family and let me say it would not be possible without out them we had no money and vision. They had no idea what I was doing but stood by my side. And helped every step of the way.
We have survived! When we first started we did not have a clear vision but rather determination. We had floods a year’s worth of work and equipment. We have had equipment failures or accidents, ect. At times it was rough enough that the only thing keeping us going was God, family and sure determination that I refused to fail.
Along the we way my biggest battle was hearing the negative comments of passerby’s, people in the community, or even some close friends that it couldn’t be done.
Money……. Money, will always be an issue! While, it may appear one way one the outside. There is always a struggle! There’s a balance in remaining affordable and not going broke. There’s always, maintenance, unplanned expenses you don’t have a savings for, and improvements that need to be done yesterday. I’ve gone 3 years without a paycheck and will probably go another two while I pay our staff before I am able to collect enough to buy lunch. I don’t say this because I want someone to feel sorry for me. I do it because I enjoy my job and my staff. At the end of the day as long as the bills are paid and we have food on the table I’m fulfilled.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
We currently have the orchard that we pick once a year and donate to the food pantry.
We have the venue that specializes in being affordable for everyone providing a place that as is as beautiful and special as the White Collar Venue with a personalized touch and experience.
We also farm 200 acres of Fescue hay. Proving the community with 4 different types of hay that accommodate their needs. This is squares, small rounds for those with smaller tractors, large cow rounds and large horse quality rounds.
At the end of the day, my only goal is to leave the world a better place than I found it and a small legacy that my kids can build on if they choose.
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
When I was young we traveled and moved a lot a kid. Typically every two years due to my dad’s work. In that time I got to experience a lot of things and cultures that most kids don’t. We lived near an Amish community in Indiana, playing with kids from there often learning from a distance about them. We lived in Colorado where I got to ski or snowboard after school. My parents took us scuba diving.
While it was hard making new friends every year or two my sister and I grew very close, becoming each others best friend and doing everything together.
Pricing:
- $1,500 rents the venue for the day
- $750 rents the venue the day before
- $450 half day events Sun-Thurs
- Call on availability for hay
- Call for availability on Highland Calves
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Www.McLadkeOrchards.com
- Instagram: @McLadkeOrchards
- Facebook: @McLadkeOrchards
