Metro

More Than A Farm

Documentary about farm cooperative
highlights history of agriculture.

Gabriella Ring
Teen2Teen Intern

S

tarted in 1971 as an experimen-
tal community in eco-living,
Lake Village Homestead now is a
bustling center of education, food produc-
tion and communal living — and the sub-
ject of a documentary to premiere Sept. 10
at the Main Art Theatre, Royal Oak.
Today, the farm occupies nearly 320
acres of forest, meadow, wetlands and
farmland, with 1.5 miles of lakeshore in
Pavilion Township, just eight miles south-
east of downtown Kalamazoo.
"The farm's overall mission can be
defined as teaching and modeling sustain-
able agriculture, community living and
the preservation of open space and farm-
land as well as the idea that the Earth, air
and water constitute our real wealth," said

manager Tony Kaufman, 40, who lives on
the farm with his daughter Ella, 8.
Kaufman, born in Detroit and raised
in Huntington Woods, graduated from
Berkley High School in 1987 and attended
Western Michigan University. There, he met
Lake Village founder Roger Ulrich, now 78,
who had been a WMU research professor.
Kaufman came to the farm for a short time,
but soon decided to live there permanently.
"Over time, I really liked the atmo-
sphere and what I was learning here,"
Kaufman said. "Gradually, I became more
and more involved with the programs:
taking care of cattle, horses, other ani-
mals as well as teaching preschool when
the kids came to do workshops with the
farm."
"Our interactive educational programs
engage children of all ages in hands-on
experiences that reveal the value of the

Tony Kaufman teaches a visiting student how to milk a goat.

Earth, air, water and animals that help sus-
tain all life," Kaufman said. `Almost every
ailment kids suffer today can be remedied
by getting them growing, working outside,

You°11 find kohler;
Harisgroile. Duravit, Grohe,
Brizo and an incredibly
knowledgeable sales team.

All in one spot.

Wittock Kitchen and Batt)

For all the designer brands you know, and a few you might not, plus a

knowledgeable sales staff, Wittock Kitchen and Bath is the only spot

you need to know. Check out our new Birmingham design showroom

for great products, great advice and unexpected inspiration including:

• A complete line of Kohler products

• Idea generating displays

• Helpful advice from our experienced sales staff

• A wide range of "green" products

N01.A./ OPEN IN

BIRMINGHAM!

950 S. Old Woodward
Birmingham, MI 48009
(248) 283-8400
(248) 283-8401 (fax)

wittockkitchenandbath.com

working with animals. Those kinds of
experiences help kids become healthy"

The documentary

Kalamazoo College graduate Ryan Booms
spent six months living on the farm and
an additional six months preparing his
documentary, Lake Village.
"He really got involved with the project
and he did an excellent job," Kaufman
said.
The film features old footage from 1971,
then travels through the farm's history by
focusing on the "farming aspect, and the
relationships that people have been form-
ing out on the farm," said Kaufman, who
notes there are "happy times," but also
"struggles of giving back to the Earth."
The film is intended "to get people
thinking about the importance of farming
again, and the importance of agriculture,"
Kaufman said. "The further society gets
away from the agrarian base, the harder
it is for that society to survive. If you have
food closer to the cities, you pollute less."
According to founder Ulrich, the film
will "get people seeing how it [food pro-
duction] is done and some of the basics
of how community is re-basing the tribe
back to the very indigenous way of living
and getting back to the very basics of
what life's about."
"How you grow your food is one of
your most basic ingredients for good and
happy spiritually sound life," he said. E

"Lake Village" premiere: 7:30 p.m. Sept. 10,

Main Art Theatre, 118 N. Main St., Royal Oak;

will 1 of 10
isarmiil GPS systems.
wiit us itl Bilmingtrafit

Wittock Kitchen and Bath

.7,

Birmingham

14

September 10 = 2009

$5. Proceeds go toward educational programs,

sustainable farming and land protection at the

tot details!

..ijWiNG, HEAT/NG ana IVIECANiCAL

farm. Kaufman and other residents will answer

questions after the film.

Gaylord

Imlay City

Shelby Township