Quimper Grange Goes to its Roots With Fundraiser for Flood-Affected Farms

News by Scott France

PORT TOWNSEND, WA — Joy, playfulness and support for flood-affected farmers are expected at a benefit that the Quimper Grange will hold this Saturday.

Money raised at the event will go to Washington farmers in about a dozen counties that were affected by the flooding in December that caused extensive damage to farms.

The fundraiser is designed for fun and playfulness, according to Sasa Bellah, who will be one of the event organizers and performers. 

The idea for the benefit started with a conversation between Bellah and Kathy Ryan, a Quimper Grange member and local food advocate.

”The scale of the damage was huge and the need was just too important,” Ryan said of her motivation to organize the event.

The community-minded event falls into the wheelhouse of a partner for this fundraiser, the Washington Farmland Trust, based in Seattle. The money that the benefit raises will go directly to the Trust, which it will distribute to farms based on their damages, according to Molly Goren, Communications Director for the Farmland Trust.

The Trust provides a variety of support for small farmers throughout Washington. “We protect farmland from development across the state, and we also support farmers through our Farm to Farmer Program, which helps new and beginner farmers getting into farming who don't have access to inherited land or generational wealth,” Goren said, “We provide a variety of resources from learning about funding opportunities and capital, to purchasing or leasing a farm, as well as connecting them with opportunities, such as, say, a landowner who wants to meet an aspiring farmer.”

The challenge is immediate and ongoing

The money that the benefit raises will be distributed as grants to farmers in impacted areas to work on recovery and replacement efforts. Goren said that the trust has received over 75 applications from farmers for these grants.

Granges across the state are moving to conduct their own similar benefits. Ryan knows that at least one, the Sequim Grange, plans to hold a fundraiser soon to assist flood-affected farmers.

Goren said that the floods wiped years of work for some farmers.

“The floods are a microcosm of what farmers face,” she said, “It's very hard for small farmers to access federal flood relief funds. The farmers are facing loss of income, damaged crops and equipment, and debris they have to clean up.”

Reported agricultural impacts in Whatcom and Skagit counties include crop loss from floodwater contamination, erosion and scouring of farmland, loss of seeds, structural damage to greenhouses and barns, and loss or damage of tractors and other equipment.

The Skagit Community Foundation and Northwest Agriculture Business Center created a farm flood‑relief program offering up to $10,000 dollars per farm for all types of Skagit County operations recovering from the December floods.

Whatcom County’s emergency management officials reported that 850 homes were impacted, including 141 with severe damage, two homes swept into the river and one destroyed by a landslide; they have not yet published a firm estimate of private residential or farm‑level losses but cautioned that the December 2025 storms could end up costing more than the estimated 150 million dollars from the 2021 floods.

The event program

The Quimper Grange benefit will run from 10:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. this Saturday. 

In addition to Bellah's puppetry, clowning and storytelling from 10:00 until noon, other performances include the Combo Choro Trio, followed by blues tunes with Lost in the Shuffle, and a partner dance to cap off the festivities.

As a Native American, Bellah has brought playfulness into ceremony with indigenous elders through the clown archetype, as well as doing social clowning.

A silent auction will be held between 12:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. There will also be Swedish pancakes with frozen mixed berries and apple sheet cake for everyone. 

There's no admission fee to the fundraiser. 

Bellah moved to Jefferson County from the Skagit Valley, she says, “with an intention to create strong communities through playfulness, because playfulness brings deep connection.” 

She plans an interactive, playful time. “Come play some games with us, create some joy, share some awareness, and bring some love and compassion for our fellow human family that's having a tough time right now.”

Anyone who cannot attend this weekend's fundraiser but is interested in donating to the Washington Farmland Trust's flood recovery fund can visit its website at: https://wafarmlandtrust.org/help-farmers-recover-floods/

The Quimper Grange is at 1219 Corona St., in Port Townsend.

For more details on the benefit, go to the calendar tab on the Beacon’s website.