WE WILL NOT BE HOSTING FARM DAY IN 2021. PLEASE READ LETTER BELOW.
As many of you know, Farm Day started as a small Sunday School picnic. Since the beginning, it has evolved and grown substantially. Over the last 10 years it has grown exponentially. So much, that the last few Farm Days we struggled with how to properly manage the event with so many visitors attending. Then 2020 brought many new and extremely difficult challenges for everyone. Many of these challenges changed life as we know it. Having considered all this, it is with great sadness we must announce that we will not be hosting Farm Day 2021. Through much prayer and conviction, we have reached the conclusion that we are no longer able to put on an event the size and magnitude of what Farm Day had become. We know that Farm Day has been a very special event and experience to so many people and so many families over the last 30 years! We are forever grateful for the relationships built through Farm Day, especially those between God and people! We are currently exploring ways to continue using the Farm as a venue to help build relationships between God, people, and our community. Our hope is that you will be patient and understanding as we navigate this process. We ask that you pray with us and for us as we move forward into new chapters. As always, we are very grateful for your love and support!!
The Farm Day team.
Farm Day @ Rocking B-A-B Ranch
FarmDay was an annual event that occurs at the Rocking B-A-B Ranch. It started 33 years ago when our Sunday School Department of First Baptist Church came to the farm for a department outing. There were 10 couples with their youngsters that first year. It was a simple event with horseback rides, a hay slide, hamburgers and hot dogs and a hayride. The group wanted to do it again the next year, and the next year, and the next year… FarmDay gradually increased in its participation, and we eventually used it as an outreach effort for our Sunday School Department and ultimately for the church. As the numbers of visitors grew, activities were added, and today they are more interesting and more fun. The class adopted a motto of “So That the World May Know”. Of course, what we would want is “That the World May Know…Who Jesus Is”.
12-15 years ago, one of the members of the FarmDay team started a treasure hunt. He dresses as a pirate and arrives at the farm in various methods. He has come in on a boat (on a trailer). He has come in a police car. One year, sky divers landed in the pasture to bring the first clue for the pirate to start the treasure hunt. For the last several years a Walton County Sheriff Office helicopter has landed in the front yard to bring the clue that starts the treasure hunt. The helicopter crew enjoys letting the kids get up close and share their information about their jobs (rescue or law enforcement) with them. The local Fire Department is present with their “Fire Safety House” . . . a busy day for them. Activities now include a Horse Whisperer / antique washing machines / Living History demonstrations / butter making / quilting / blacksmith demonstrations / the Christian Farmers of America / a corn trough for toddlers / grinding wheel / corn shucking and shelling / a “Jailhouse” picture opportunity / the Gideons / coin scramble / K-9 performance / face painting / giant hay slide /
One of the major attractions is our local Civil War re-enactors who set up a camp and are eager to share history with the many folks who stop to visit and talk with them and see how they would live in an 1860’s camp.
Of course we have peafowl, miniature donkeys, sheep, a baby pig, horses, goats, and sulcata tortoises. Naomi, our camel is available for petting and camel kisses. A new popular visit is our new lemur pen with 5 of the most adorable ring-tailed creatures. Our shy albino wallaby is an attraction. The two things at FarmDay that got the most vote for “best liked” was horseback riding and the petting pens.
Feeding the crowd is a huge event that is managed very effectively by a team of people. It is amazing to see how effectively the team feeds that many people very efficiently. The FarmDay team provides pulled pork BBQ that is very popular. We ask each of the visitors that come to FarmDay to bring two things. A) A big dish of food, and we emphasize BIG, and B) someone who doesn’t go to church.
We have horseback riding all during the day. We now have a friend that brings his Percheron horses and cargo wagon and gives the guests a ride around the pasture. Also, in that pasture is a tractor pulling a wagon for a hay ride experience. Farm Day also provides several things that are available all day, including a Southern tradition of boiled peanuts as well as cotton candy, snow cones, and funnel cakes.
At the end of the day we have a huge bonfire, material is collected all year, and an old-fashioned marshmallow roast.
You will notice one of the pictures on our home page is a picture of the barn with the big banner that says, “That the World May Know”, which, again, is the goal for Farm Day.
SO THAT THE WORLD MAY KNOW…WHO JESUS IS!
Thanks for visiting the FarmDay page on the Rocking B-A-B Ranch website.
Oh, by the way, everything at FarmDay is f r e e ……… Thank you Jesus for Your Free Gift.
Bill Buckelew (2018)