Honeybees Offer Healing at Oregon's Blanchet Farm

There's nothing like being in nature, connecting with the land and animals around you. Even for those who work in fields, barns, and muck daily, there's something soul-satisfying about what you've accomplished at the end of the day. So it shouldn't come as a surprise that "Green Care" - a practice in which agriculture and horticulture are utilized in therapy - is gaining popularity, especially in the Northwest.

Recently, Portland's KATU 2 ABC has created a fresh buzz around one unique Oregon farm facility.

What is Blanchet Farm?

Self-described as a "rustic addiction recovery program," Blanchet Farm is in Carlton, Oregon. The 62-acre farm offers a free recovery program in a rural setting, hosting up to 22 men at a time in a peer-support group. Those men are supported in their recovery goals with hands-on caring experience in multiple ways, including beekeeping.

Workers train the men on how to do many farm tasks, and even how to become beekeepers. The act of beekeeping is being studied for its possible therapeutic effects in other cases, such as veterans suffering from PTSD. It's believed that the focus required, along with the emphasis on empathy and care, helps calm and steady the racing thoughts of the brain.

“It takes away from just thinking about themselves. It teaches empathy and sympathy. Caring for any animal does.” - Ross Sears, Blanchet Farm’s long-time manager

Others at Blanchet Farm find different ways of recovery

One story spotlighted on Blanchet Farm's website is that of Rob Moody. Moody was struggling with Methadone addiction and withdrawal, spending time on the farm doing various tasks including tending wildlife. He would often spend his free time working on art.

Said Moody, "The farm allowed me to pick up the pieces. It allowed me to discover pieces of myself that I didn’t know existed." Moody is now seeking to become a Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor.