Agricultural attorney receives awards for relief work targeting small farmers

COLUMBIA, S.C. - May 6, 2020 - PRLog -- For the last seven years, pioneering agricultural attorney Jillian Hishaw has devoted countless hours and resources to sustaining small, independent farms — particularly the shrinking acreage owned by aging Black farmers.

Now, after disbursing over $25,000 in emergency aid to small farmers during the COVID-19 pandemic and distributing more than 300,000 pounds of food to the hungry in the U.S., Hishaw has been recognized with the Black Business Relief Award from We Buy Black and Shea Moisture.

Hishaw is the Founding Director of the Family Agriculture Resources Management Services, or F.A.R.M.S., a legal nonprofit organization that helps farmers and landowners retain land for future use of next generation farmers.

A total of 3,588 small businesses applied for the Black Business Relief Award, of which 20 winners were selected by a panel of five celebrity judges. As one of the winners, F.A.R.M.S. will receive $5,000, which she said will go toward the organization's food bank program and to providing emergency stipends to farmers.

According to D'Juan Hopewell (@HopewellThought) of WeBuyBlack, F.A.R.M.S. will be able to make a big impact during a time when small farmers face particularly insidious existential threats.

"[F.A.R.M.S.] is totally worthy of this honor," Hopewell wrote in an article at WeBuyBlack.com. "This is a challenging time for farmers, those who literally feed the nation… The $5,000 grant from We Buy Black and SheaMoisture can't come at a better time for F.A.R.M.S."

Read Hopewell's full article about the award at
https://webuyblack.com/blog/black-business-relief-fund-aw....

"I am overjoyed to have my efforts and F.A.R.M.S. work selected at such a competitive level," Hishaw said. "Our food bank program and emergency farmer's fund are at a limited capacity, so naturally I am thrilled that we will be able to add money to our program to continue meeting the needs of the rural communities we serve."

Watch a video from Clif Bar & Company about F.A.R.M.S. (photo credit: Meg Haywood) at https://youtu.be/fQkcIrOFQ-U.



Learn more about F.A.R.M.S. at www.30000acres.org. Follow F.A.R.M.S. on Facebook (@30000acres).