Alexis

Our Vision for a Family Farm

My name is Alexis Tjapkes, and my fiancé is Bailie Brauninger. We are both 26 years old, and we have two children whom we homeschool.

We are looking for an opportunity to purchase land through a land contract and begin building a farm that can become a home, a source of nourishment, a place of education, and a place where our family can grow closer to God.

Our dream is rooted in our faith. We want to learn how to live from the land—to grow our own food, care for animals, work with our hands, and experience the blessings God provides through His creation. We want our children to understand where their food comes from, how much work goes into producing it, and the responsibility and gratitude that come with caring for the land and animals.

Because we homeschool our children, we hope the farm can become part of their education every single day. Instead of learning only from books, they can learn through experience—planting seeds, tending gardens, caring for animals, understanding nature, learning responsibility, and watching the seasons change. We want them to learn that education can happen through the hands-on work of life.

But our dream goes beyond our own family.

We hope to eventually create a Christian youth ministry centered around farming, gardening, animals, faith, and community. We want children to have a safe and meaningful place where they can get their hands in the soil, plant and harvest vegetables, care for animals, learn valuable life skills, and experience the joy of watching something grow because of the work they put into it.

Most importantly, we want to help children discover God through His creation.

We want to teach them that when we plant a seed, nurture it, and eventually receive its fruit, we are reminded of the One who created it and provides for us. We hope the farm can become a place where children can slow down, step away from the distractions of everyday life, and experience faith in a very real and tangible way.

We don’t expect this dream to happen overnight. We understand that farming takes patience, sacrifice, responsibility, and an incredible amount of hard work. We are willing to start small, learn, work, and build over time.

If you are willing to consider a land contract with us, you would not simply be helping us purchase a piece of property. You would be helping us establish the foundation for our family’s future and, hopefully, a place that can one day positively impact many other children and families.

We would be honored to care for the land, respect what has been built before us, and make it something that continues to provide for generations to come.

Our hope is to build a farm where faith, family, homeschooling, hard work, animals, gardens, and community can grow together.

We believe God has placed this vision on our hearts for a reason. We are praying for the right piece of land and the right person who will be willing to help us begin this journey.

We both work I have a cleaning business that does not require a lot of my time and brings in half of the income. My fiancé works 40 hours a week as an insulator and plans to help outside of his work schedule. I plan to work in the farm full-time and homeschool my children.