Brad Ryan
Growing up, I never liked working in my parents' garden (although I did like eating all of the raspberries before my mom could freeze any of them). It was a lot of work. It was always hot. I didn't enjoy the tedious work of picking green beans and had a fear of tomato hornworms; so naturally I became a farmer.
After graduating from Tamarac High School, I studied Criminal Justice at SUNY Oneonta. During that time, I developed a passion for health and fitness as well as a desire to learn how to become self-sufficient. After graduating from Oneonta, I worked at the Troy YMCA as a personal trainer for two years, where I primarily worked with cancer survivors through the LIVESTRONG foundation. During those two years, I began to realize that I could help many more people by going back to school to earn a degree in nutrition.
In May 2018, I received my diploma with a major in Nutrition and minors in Chemistry, and Psychology from SUNY Plattsburgh. During my time in Plattsburgh, I worked as the student garden manager and in 2017 became the president of the Food Group- a club that promotes sustainability in food production and agriculture. I volunteered on many farms in the surrounding area and much of my time apart from studying was spent learning about sustainable agriculture and small-scale farming.
After I returned home from school (for good this time), I worked as an intern on a 2 acre urban farm in Troy, NY with The Produce Project through Capital Roots. The Produce Project is a job readiness program for teens in the Troy City School District that teaches them the skills and work ethic necessary to prepare them for a lifetime of success. My time spent with the students and Capital Roots as a whole had a significant impact on me as well as my future career goals. In addition to working on our farm, I currently, I work at the Guilderland YMCA as the Wellness Director.
With the combination of our farm, my education in nutrition, as well as my experience with the Capital District YMCA, and Capital Roots, it is my mission to help as many people as possible live happy, healthy lives, and have a positive impact on our local food system.
Emily Ryan
Growing up in Rhode Island, I was fortunate enough to be part of a family of green thumbs. My parents and brother nurtured beautiful gardens each year, even through the winter in the small greenhouse off of our kitchen. While I certainly enjoyed the fruits of their labor, to say that I was the last one anyone expected to start a market gardening business would be an understatement.
After moving to upstate NY in my early 20s, I met Brad briefly while working at the Troy YMCA. We were acquaintances at best; it wasn’t until years later that we developed a friendship that has led to spending our lives together. As time went on and I returned to school to study Occupational Therapy, I also began to frequent local farmer’s markets. I so looked forward to the ever-changing array of locally grown produce and chatting with the market vendors that I would see on a weekly basis. It made me nostalgic for my childhood running outside to the backyard to berries and flowers.
Around the time that Brad re-entered my life, I moved into an apartment that had community garden plots available to their residents and I couldn’t have been more excited to get out in the garden. As Brad and I started dating in the summer of 2015, he often spoke of his goal of starting a small farm. I admired his ambition and strong desire to carry-on family tradition. Soon, “his” goal grew to be “our” goal. While developing our plan to launch Ryan Valley Farm, I work as a Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant in a local public school district. My days are spent with children ages 3-11, working as part of their educational team to foster the development of foundational skills to engage in and learn about their world. With Ryan Valley Farm open for business as of June 2017, we have realized the initial step of our dream. After a successful first season, we look forward to further establishing ourselves as a source of high-quality, locally grown produce in our community.
Abigail Ryan
Abigail Ryan joined our family in February 2019. She is funny, curious, bright and keeps us on our toes more and more each day! Abigail seems to be growing into farm life nicely so far; she loves digging in the dirt, checking on the fruit trees, pointing out the bumblebees, waving hello to the chicks and stopping to smell each of the flowers on our daily walks. We are so happy to welcome the 12th generation into the family tradition!
Lucy Ryan
We adopted Lucy from the Saratoga County Animal Shelter on January 21, 2017. Our sweet girl is sassy and quirky-as-can-be. She is always giving us a good laugh and keeps us on our toes. Lucy has the biggest heart, instantly loving everyone she meets (including the deer, coyote and red fox we have come across on our hikes). She is not, however, a fan of rabbits and does a great job as Chief of Rabbit Patrol around the farm.
Lucy loves keeping us company while we work in the gardens. In fact, in most pictures we take she can be spotted somewhere in the background.