You will find a family’s love for farming among the cows, chickens, ducks, rabbits, and other animals walking around Wilke R Organic Farm in Sturgeon Bay. The farm has been in the family for nearly 150 years, but it has only been a decade since the Wilke family decided to go organic. That was Kevin and Tricia’s idea to give their girls, Rebecca, Rachel, and Ruth, a brighter future by changing how they treated their animals and the land they farm. It is a process the three daughters have embraced, with Kevin working in the field and Tricia handling the animals in the barn. The trio is getting a feeling of everything that goes on at the farm, with the idea that the experience will potentially lead to their future in farming. Kevin and Tricia are proud that farming was never something they pushed on their girls, and their passion for agriculture grew organically.
While Rachel is pursuing a job in the medical field outside of agriculture, Rebecca and Ruth are enrolled at UW-Platteville as they learn the business side of farming. You can learn more about the Wilke family by watching our Ask the Farmer video presented by the Door County Farm Bureau or visiting the farm this Sunday for the Sevastopol FFA Dairy Breakfast, which begins at 6 a.m.
