Today we’d like to introduce you to Tron Severe. They and their team shared their story with us below:
Originally from the Central Valley of California, Tron Severe now resides in the Lowcountry of South Carolina. He married his high school sweetheart and is the father of three. He is the Executive Director at Healing Farms, a non-profit that works to meet the needs of young adults with disabilities and their families in Charleston, SC. Before joining Healing Farms in 2014, Tron worked in the public school system, teaching special education at the high school level for nine years. Although he planned to teach forever, he felt God directing him to advocate and serve his students as they became adults. He is passionate about empowering people to recognize the special needs population for their ability rather than their disability. He believes the true community can only come by including those the world perceives as the least of these.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Every season has had some learning curves. I went to school to be a teacher, not a fundraiser or a non-profit leader. The most important thing for me is to surround yourself with people who have the answers or suggestions to the questions you are looking for.
We’ve been impressed with Healing Farms, but for folks who might need to be more familiar, what can you share about what you do and what sets you apart?
The Need: Each year, thousands of students with disabilities are aging out of high schools across our state alone with few meaningful options. There is a tremendous need for adult programming and support, especially for individuals with significant intellectual disabilities. Funding for these programs has been dramatically cut, and there is a huge gap between what young adults with disabilities need and what they receive. Many of the government-funded programs have long wait lists and programs that are not individualized.
Our mission: Since 1999, Healing Farms has played an integral part in serving the special needs community in the Charleston area. Many young adults with disabilities do not follow the traditional path of attending college or joining the workforce after high school. For these individuals, we offer a community at Healing Farms, where our programming provides opportunities that support relevant life skills that benefit our participants’ lives. We strive to identify, nurture, and share the gifts and talents of our participants while inspiring and empowering others to see ability first, not disability.
Our Social Enterprise: Our social enterprise products come from ideas dreamed up by our participants during their experiences gardening, cooking, and creating on our small urban farm. The products we create provide job skills to our participants and the funds to underwrite the support we provide. In 2013, we launched our first product, Healing Farms Salsa, and to date, we have sold more than 8,000 jars. Our product line includes cookies, candles, soap, and more! You can shop our gifts that give back online at www.healingfarms.com/shop.
What’s next?
For the last 10 years, we have been operating our day program out of our West Ashley location; we have families that travel, and we have been serving families in Charleston, Dorchester, and Berkeley Counties. Many more families have expressed interest in our programming, but transportation to our West Ashley location is a hurdle. The original concept of our day program has always been to meet the needs of families in the local community and to serve participants in their backyards. Our Charleston location is almost at capacity and requires families to commute from both near and far. Some families even travel up to 30 miles each way.
Commutes should be manageable for families. Participants should be given opportunities for programming with friends from school, church, or their miracle league team. We aim to expand into local communities where we can have relationships with local stakeholders. Expanding to local communities allows us to recruit local volunteers for proximity’s sake and meaningful collaboration. It allows us to create more personalized programming based on the participants’ needs. And it will enable us to teach new communities to see our participants for what they can do instead of what they can’t do.
We also are looking forward to our upcoming spring fundraiser. Join us on April 20th at Wannamaker Park for the Walk & Roll as we unite to #SeeAbility. Together, we can help change the future for young adults with disabilities. How you participate is up to you – walk, push a stroller, ride a wheelchair. At the Walk & Roll, you can walk alongside local supporters and the families we serve. There will be food, music, and a fun zone with games and activities for all ages. The whole idea is to have fun for a great cause!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.healingfarms.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HealingFarmsCHS/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@healingfarmschs
