Quincy Bradley, Daron Babcock, and “Q the Younger” at Bonton Farms’ Extension this summer. Message frequency is recurring and varies. Bonton Farms is an entrepreneurial and agricultural intervention to restore lives, create jobs and ignite hope in the most forgotten and neglected neighborhoods for the most marginalized and vulnerable people. At first, it was no more than a tiny vegetable patch on a vacant lot beside Daron Babcock’s Habitat for Humanity house, a small plot of green in a dangerous, run-down, historically disadvantaged South Dallas neighborhood full of society’s most marginalized people. CEO Spotlight. In Bonton, this was made possible through urban farming. Thanks to Daron Babcock, this neighborhood is now home to multiple urban gardens and a thriving community market. I met a beautiful young lady in college. In 2014, Bonton Farms owner Daron Babcock started the urban farm to bring healthy food and jobs to South Dallas. Donations and words of encouragement have filled … Daron Babcock, Executive Director of Bonton Farms, and Donna Collins, Founder of The Jelly Queens, began imagining a facility for preserving food grown on the farm. July 18, 2016. We got married and had two boys. Just two short years ago, the south Dallas lot where Bonton Farms sits today was abandoned – overflowing with trash and overgrown trees. More About Us. Bonton Farms was built to help feed people in the Bonton food desert where access to healthy foods was non-existent. Download. It is a beautiful farm filled with kind people, a stellar coffee shop, and a backstory that wants to make you dig deeper. The urban farm transformed the area, providing living-wage jobs and affordable, healthy food. While I have your attention: Daron Babcock. Five years ago, Babcock was a corporate manager, living with his two sons in a four-bedroom house in Frisco. Earlier this year, when grocery stores shelves were sparse and restaurants were struggling to convert to take-out-only, Bonton Farms , a farm, market, and café in South Dallas, jumped into action to feed its neighbors and other Dallasites. Jobs were scarce for folks with a record, he says, and South Dallas was a food desert. A few months back, I went with a friend to Bonton Farms, which is located in the community of Bonton in south Dallas. “Let’s start small and see where it takes us.” Still Shaping: DFW - Daron Babcock of Bonton Farms. "The idea of this land that was abandoned, that nobody saw value in - and now, it's producing life and food. Bonton is a food desert, which the U.S. Department of Agriculture defines as an area without a full-service grocery store within a 1-mile radius. South Dallas is also a “Food Desert”, … The idea was seeded nearly two years ago. On Thursday, Bonton Farms Director Daron Babcock will be the featured speaker for [email protected]’s summer series.. Bonton Farms is situated in the South Dallas neighborhood known as Bonton, where 63 percent of its residents lack personal transportation and the nearest grocery store is a three-hour round-trip bus ride away, according to its website. Babcock and his wife, Theda, started Bonton Farms in 2014 to bring healthy food staples to South Dallas. Bonton Farms executive director Daron Babcock said he has had a hard time keeping up with emails lately. When we were in our 30s, my wife was diagnosed with cancer, and two years later she passed away. As a reminder, Bonton Farms is an urban farm that services the South Dallas community where 85% of men have been to prison, poverty is rampant and jobs are scarce. I have always loved hearing other people’s stories. FOLLOW US. Bonton is a community marred by years of chronic disinvestment and rampant poverty .Bonton Farms is committed to the restoration of Bonton by restoring lives, creating jobs and igniting hope. Daron Babcock, founder of Bonton Farms, told our group on tour that he was invited to be a part of the group. Bonton residents Daron Babcock (first image), and Patrick Wright (second image) are part of a team dedicated to providing healthy, affordable food for the Bonton neighborhood through the creation of Bonton Farm-Works. I was born and raised in the panhandle of Texas. The name “Bonton Farms” is derivative of its location: a neighborhood nicknamed “bomb-town” because of the extreme racial terrorism it experienced in the mid 20th century. Daron was… Daron Babcock is the executive director of the remarkable urban garden built in and for this community along the Trinity River. When texting this station, message & data rates apply. Once I left, I knew I wanted to go back and learn more. When Bonton Farms founder Daron Babcock moved to Bonton in 2012, beets—or any fresh, non-frozen, non-canned vegetables for that matter—were nearly impossible to find nearby. Daron Babcock of Bonton Farms CBS News Daron Babcock started the small urban farm and 40-acre extension to solve a health crisis in the region. Daron Babcock - Bonton Farms. Just because Daron Babcock loved the overalls so much, we thought we’d share the joy with our Bonton Farms family! At Bonton Farms, according to the CPB, Babcock … His focus is on rebuilding the institutions—faith, family, community—that make for strong, healthy homes and resilient residents. Up to this point in Daron’s life, he was a white collar worker with a lucrative job in the business world. It's a metaphor for what's happening the community." Before Bonton Farms, Bonton was a food desert. I was lost. I stopped keeping in touch with my friends and family. Photo by Monica Johnson. “Today, Bonton Farms serves men and women coming out of incarceration, homelessness, domestic violence and addiction,” says Babcock. Despite decades of struggle in Bonton, we believe that our community can change from within, driven by our own people, using our own hands. Daron Babcock is the founder and director of Bonton Farms, an urban farm that works to grow lives as it grows vegetables. No purchase necessary. Bonton Farms’ Sweat Equity Chipping Away At South Dallas Food Desert By Robbie Owens May 17, 2016 at 6:36 pm Filed Under: Bonton Farms , Daron Babcock … This farm is life changing for the Bonton community as it is creating jobs, supplying healthy food, and offering hope to its residents. Phone: Traffic Tip Line: 214-219-1080 . Executive Director of Bonton Farms. And, the carrots are just as amazing! Bonton Farms is an oasis in the midst of South Dallas where poverty, crime, and unemployment rates are high. Daron Babcock - Bonton Farms . The name “Bonton Farms” is derivative of its location: a neighborhood nicknamed “bomb-town” because of the extreme racial terrorism it experienced in the mid 20th century. And that is exactly what I did. Bonton Farms started small. The Dallas Morning News reports that for Daron Babcock, executive director of Bonton Farms, this moment has been a long time coming. ... vice president of Bonton Farms. Bonton Village, the new homeless-to-work proposal from the folks who created Bonton Farms, has cleared new hurdles in its quest to build a functioning farm and community destination in the heart of Lake Highlands.The City of Dallas approved extending Bonton’s option to acquire the 12.8 acres at 12000 Greenville between Forest Lane and LBJ. We are still taking orders at The Market. Daron Babcock founded Bonton Farms in 2012 to aid inner city men determined to work rather than return to prison. Bonton Farms Founder Daron Babcock Delivers Inspirational Lecture at ESD. I am moved and inspired by Bonton Farms founder, Daron Babcock. Daron Babcock Founder of Bonton Farms. 00:07:28. Daron Babcock plants herbs and vegetables around the perimeter of the patio. Working on no sleep from the night before, Daron Babcock from Bonton Farms came and spoke to the Club last Friday morning abouth the great work he is doing down in south Dallas. The featured speaker for this year’s event will be Daron Babcock, “The Rogue Shepherd” and founder of Bonton Farms in South Dallas. Reply STOP to cancel. Join Facebook to connect with Daron Babcock and others you may know. Daron has led Bonton Farms in launching: A honey company, a car company and transportation initiative, a lawn care service, a market and restaurant, a private Christian school, a 40+ acre farm, a housing initiative, and much more to create 30+ jobs so far. The catalyst has been Daron Babcock, a former business executive who found his faith and then a calling in the little post-World War I housing community known as Bonton. The Episcopal School of Dallas. The community of Bonton stands as a testament to the fact that all people can flourish when provided with the right environment and the necessary resources to tap into their gifts and talents. Bonton Farms is the creation of Daron Babcock. On a recent visit to the farm, it was bursting with life – farmers harvesting heirloom tomatoes, neighborhood kids helping out and baby … Daron Babcock is on Facebook. The strength of its residents and the uniting power of food helps the Bonton Farms community survive, if not thrive, even during Covid 19. Daron Babcock. Friday, December 27th. Bonton Farms founder Daron Babcock with Malachi and milking goats. Daron Babcock is the executive director of the remarkable urban garden built in and for this community along the Trinity River. Courtney Collins / KERA Bonton Farms in South Dallas is evolving to serve its community, by serving meals. 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