Grace speaks of Sprinkel as sort of an agricultural celebrity who has the kind of charisma that draws people in. During her time on his farm, she saw a lot of locals interested in what he was doing. “All of these teachers, local educational nonprofits, and families were approaching him, wanting to volunteer on the farm or get their kids out for a field trip. Food for Thought, which is another really great local nonprofit that is teaching kids about food and farming, started bringing third grade classes to the farm,” she recalls. Grace was the point person, organizing the curriculum and getting teachers involved. “That’s where I started seeing how essential the impact of farm-based education is,” she says. Farmer and the Cook was not only a conduit for her purpose-driven mission, but it’s also where she met her husband, professional surfer Dan Malloy. His relentless travel schedule as one of the world’s most recognized surfers meant he missed a few CSA pickups, which prompted Grace to pick up the phone with each abandoned delivery. A chance meeting at the restaurant turned frustration into fondness. “We were head over heels right from the beginning,” Grace says. Dan’s surfing career and environmentalism went hand in hand — Grace remembers him cruising around town in a little biodiesel pickup truck.
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HE WAS DRAWN TO BOOKS LIKE “Little House on the Prairie,” which romanticized the simplicity of homestead life — the warmth of a crackling fire and a horse tied up outside. She kept those memories in her heart, but it wasn’t until college that she reconnected with those early experiences — and the dirt under her fingernails — that would shape her future. After attending Wesleyan University in Connecticut for two years, she took a break to work at Farmer and the Cook, a hybrid restaurant and farm stand in Ojai — founded by Steve Sprinkel, the farmer, and Olivia Chase, the cook. Grace eventually pivoted to the environmental studies program at University of California, Santa Barbara, so she could continue working on the farm, which has been providing
Above: Poco Farm is a community hub for everyone in Ojai and the surrounding areas. Left: Grace Bueti Malloy says Poco “is a base farm space where we can demonstrate a lot of different activities.” Opposite: Students are given the opportunity to see where their food comes from, like making breakfast using eggs from Poco’s chickens.
fresh, organic produce to its patrons and its cafe for more than two decades. Sprinkel is also a passionate regenerative farmer who runs the most popular community supported agriculture (CSA) program in the Ojai Valley.
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ISSUE 02
NATURAL CURIOSITIES
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