Agricultural students at Pierce College have witnessed the dwindling of the school’s resources, from farm animals to the civil war reenactment.
Could the Farm Center be next?
Since the establishment of Pierce College in 1947, the school has stood out from the rest of the colleges in the San Fernando Valley.
Year round activities such as the Harvest Fest, Christmas tree sales, agricultural-based education programs, and the produce center take advantage of the continuously growing Farm Center.
Although Pierce College is constantly beautifying itself, over the years Pierce has lost hundreds of cattle and various other animals as well as the civil war reenactment.
It’s a sad thought that future generations might never have the opportunity to experience the haunted maze or purchase Halloween pumpkins at the produce center.
Pierce would never be the same without its yearly hayrides, petting zoos, birthday parties and carnival attractions, but with the ever-growing urban landscape being built around the school, the center will soon look outdated.
If the farm center is the next on the list of terminated programs, not only will the annual events and produce sales disappear but the year- round jobs the center offers Pierce students will be gone as well.
The school made an agreement with the manager of the farm, Robert McBroom, at the opening of the center to hire a significant amount of students for their year-round positions to help as many students as possible find decent work close to school.
McBroom takes pride in the family-run atmosphere the center has and refers to his dedicated employees as “lifers,“ because most of the employees have been at the center for four or more years, and hope to be employed for many more to come.
Some of the most recent improvements the lifers have done are the wooden canopies pavilion in the back section of the center as well as the grass fields.
These new fields have added to the scenery of the center and attracted some of the Warner Center businesses requesting to have their corporate picnics at the center.
These updates have already boosted the popularity of the center and are only a few of the additions McBroom hopes to have the time and chance to put into action.
“We’re hopeful for many more seasons to come,” said McBroom.