Troy Porter, owner of Porter’s Patch, says “fall family farm fun” is the best way to describe Farmtoberfest, a weekend offering through October at the farm located east of Navarino.
Activities at Porter’s Patch have changed over the years, said Porter, who took over the family business eight years ago.
“Every year we add new games and attractions,” he said. “A lot is bringing your kids out. Families come to get away from their busy lives. There’s a lot of smiling faces here.”
Porter said families enjoy the bucolic setting of farm buildings and land groomed and filled with fall accents.
“I’m very passionate about what I do,” he said.
Farmtoberfest features a pumpkin village, corn cob chuck, old-fashioned water pump races, hay bale fort building, silo chalk graffiti, pumpkin painting, corn maze and hay rides.
The Porters began growing strawberries and have transitioned into raspberries and blueberries. They also grow asparagus, peas, beans, cucumbers, zucchini, squash and pumpkins. Customers can pick their own and or buy from the already picked selection.
“It was a steep learning curve,” said Porter, who was previously in sales. “It’s hard to get all good crops. The work is continuous.”
The family also plants soybeans, wheat and oats on the farm, which Fred Porter purchased in 1913. After a number of other Porter owners, Troy’s parents, Allen and Judy, purchased sections of it beginning in 1996. Troy purchased 80 acres and the buildings in 2006. Last year it was honored as a Century Farm.
Porter gets help from his grown children, Abby, Lucas and Danielle. His mom and dad, who live just a short distance away, also help out.
With a busy spring, summer and fall, winter is a time for other projects, Terry Porter said, like making wood.
Proceeds from food and refreshments sold from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 5 at Farmtoberfest will be donated to Nick and Trina Anvelink, of Navarino, for their 6-year-old daughter, Josie, who was diagnosed in March with juvenile dermatomyositis, an autoimmune disease.
Josie receives an oral steroid daily and an injection once a week to fight the incurable disease. Information on the disease will be available Oct. 5 at Farmtoberfest. The rain date is Oct. 12.
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