Testimonials (Event) Amplifying Indigenous Women’s Perspectives for Healthy Soil and Water April 13, 2024

4/19/2024

The following testimonials provide firsthand accounts of participants' experiences, highlighting the impact of this important event about soil and water. These valuable insights and feedback help showcase the event's effectiveness and influence future engagement with environmental issues.

Beth Sastre

Commercial Horticulturist Loudoun Extension Office Virginia Cooperative Extension

"It was a GREAT program!

Thank you to our main organizers Katie and Derrick, to all collaborators, and to our excellent speakers; you brought us inspiration and encouragement.

This program deserves to have a press release and marketing coverage."

Evgeniya Strootz

Loudoun County School Board

"Thank you to all of you for your contribution to make this event happen!

For me, it was really an important milestone in the process of changing the perspective of seeing life.

If this is possible, please share the presentations with us. Dr. Lyla had to skip many slides that our volunteers and I are interested to see."

Cari Taylor

Counsellor / Consultant
Author, One Living System

"I am so blessed to be in this thread - thank you Derrick for including me.

I am not known to any of you - but I am behind the scenes with initiating this event with Derrick and Ryan as another of the initiatives of the One Living System team.

What is always achieved in Loudoun County with these events is truly inspirational and shows how a locality can truly become a deeply connected and committed community that makes huge changes for its people and has a ripple effect to all around.

I can't wait to see what comes next and to have this team build so rapidly towards being a real movement!

Thank you to everyone for your presence and participation on the day - for your openness and willingness to take steps towards SEEDING the changes we so dearly need.

To Lyla June and Vicki and René - I have heard so many great stories about your presentations and know that the voice of 3 powerful Indigenous Women holds deep impact beyond those human ears who hear it - into the whispers of the winds that comfort the spirits to know she is being tendered to.
I send deep gratitude and warmth my heart walks with yours,"

John Ellis

Economist, Rural Advocate

"I think the Virginia Master Naturalist course should include a session on indigenous landscape management."

Katie Trozzo

Department of Agricultural, Leadership, and Community Education at Virginia Tech

"Echoing so much gratitude and appreciation over here as well. I am so grateful to have been a part of supporting such an important event. Thanks to everyone who made this event possible, especially to our speakers Dr. Lyla, Vicky, and Rene’, Derrick for bringing us all together, Lori and Oatlands for hosting us, Beth and VCE for providing us amazing pizza from Fireside Farm, the so so many partners, donors, and exhibitors who contributed to make this happen, and to everyone who joined to be part of this important conversation and learning! I am excited for all the ripples casting out from our time together and look forward to where they are leading us.

In gratitude,
Katie"

Additional Recognition

The gathering was hosted by Agricair and Oatlands in collaboration with the Virginia Tech Center for Food Systems and Community Transformation with over seven donors and 12 partners who contributed to make the event happen. Partners include:
● American Farmland Trust
● Virginia Cooperative Extension
● 4theSoil
● Loudoun County
● Loudoun Soil and Water Conservation District
● Piedmont Environmental Council
● One Living System
● Farm and Fork Kitchen
● Save Rural Loudoun
● Fireside Farm
● Sanctuary on the Trail

Lori Kimball

Oatlands
SavingPlaces.org

"Saturday was an amazing day! Thank you to everyone who organized and participated in it. As Katie said, it is exciting to see the ripples casting out from the event and to anticipate where they will lead us."

Three Indigenous Women's Perspectives

The three Indigenous speakers were: • Dr. Lyla June Johnston - Architects of Abundance: Indigenous Food Systems and the Excavation of Hidden History • Victoria Persinger Ferguson - Living off the Land: The Earth is our Mother • Rene' Locklear White (Our Sanctuary on the Trail Co-Founder) - Sustaining Our Indigenous Roots: Protecting Water, Soil, and Food.

Ryan Bartlett

Natural Law Mentor | Regenerative Ryan, LLC
Community Builder | One Living System
BioGeometry Energy-Balancing /
EMF Radiation Protection

"I AM overflowing with love for you all. I send a heartfelt gratitude for everybody's monumental PRESENCE this weekend, even the wily wind spirit, Sylph.

Every role mattered, no matter how small or large, you all played a major part.

What echoes in my mind from the blessings bestowed upon us by our indigenous women?

The time-tested success our first peoples have had in the past of consulting the women first before moving into action. With that, I digress. I will continue with my prayer & meditation.

Let us continue our journey together by leading with our hearts as we listen to the Divine Feminine for the vision & then the Divine Masculine can serve Her with the execution."

Donna Bohanon

Public historian, Preservationist, and Instructor

"Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and passion! Friday's and yesterday's events represented a much needed change of pace for me. I anticipated the event would be wonderful but it exceeded my expectations. There was so much that resonated with me and it was great to be around like-minded people.

Best regards and sincere gratitude to you all"

Derrick Clarke

AgriCair
501(c)(3), non-partisan, nonprofit corporation dedicated to the maintenance of our
“One Living System”
through soil and water advocacy

"It is an honor to have come together, with "Diverse Village Support", to produce "Amplifying Indigenous Women's Perspectives" on Healthy Soil and Water.

Using the phrase "Ag Working Group" from John Adams, I propose we cultivate our next steps using objectives and priorities from Save Rural Loudoun, The Farm Bureau, CBF, and others , to further increase awareness and community participation for Prime Soils initiatives.

I am planning to meet with Victoria and Rene' to learn more about how we can incrementally integrate the many ways of indigenous women that we heard about this past Saturday, to further protect our soil and water resources and to positively impact our environment here in Loudoun County."

Special Thanks

This event is made possible by a grant from the VanHuyck/Chockley Family Foundation, the Virginia Tech Department of Agricultural, Leadership, & Community Education, American Farmland Trust and donations made to agricair. One notable agricair donation was made by the local "Bank of Clarke County."