HADLEY – Rosendo Santizo never planned on reverting to farm work, let alone owning a farm in Pioneer Valley when he first emigrated to Florida from Guatemala in 2005. But after spending 13 years working and learning alongside current Winter Moon Roots Farm owner Michael Docter, Santizo now finds himself on the verge of taking ownership.

Santizo first helped his parents and grandparents grow corn and raise sheep as a boy in his hometown, San Marcos, Guatemala, less than 20 miles from the Mexican border.

“We were very poor, sometimes we had enough food and sometimes not,” Santizo said. “My mom often had to go work far away to make some money, so I had to take care of my siblings because I was one of the older siblings. We were all little, though, and it was hard to find food and cook food for ourselves. When I was 13 years old, I started working to bring money home and support my family. But in Guatemala, there are not enough job opportunities for everyone. So, when I was 19 years old, I had to come here to the U.S.”

Santizo landed in Florida in 2005 where he would work in construction for two years, sending money back to Guatemala to support his family. He lost his job at the start of the Great Recession and had multiple friends recommend moving to Massachusetts, an agricultural state with an abundance of farming opportunities. He first worked on a tobacco farm but felt the drawbacks of seasonal work and having nothing to do in November. Winter Moon Roots harvests its crops, all certified organic winter root vegetables, that same month.

“In 2009, a friend told me to come harvest carrots with them, so I came, and met Michael Docter,” Santizo said. “For some reason, we clicked. I don’t know what he saw in me, maybe I was just a hard worker, but he offered me the job of washing and packing roots for him through the winter. So that’s what brought me to the Valley, and then I started working in the summers for Next Barn Over which is a large CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) in Hadley. I worked for Next Barn Over in the summers and Winter Moon Roots in the winters.”

For the next 10 years, Santizo would begin learning the ins and outs of the farm. He helped with seeding, cultivating, harvesting, washing and packing, marketing, delivering and bookkeeping. Docter has been showing Santizo the intricacies of the business and subtle timing considerations like the best conditions to harvest in and when to plant carrots versus beets.

“Michael is a good guy – the best. He’s like family to me and I’ve been so happy to work with him,” Santizo said. “When we work together, we have fun, we laugh if we make a mistake instead of being mad at each other, and then talk about what we learned from the experience. I have a lot of experience growing crops, with Michael and other farms, so that part has been easy to learn. The marketing is always a little bit harder for me, but now I’ve made my own relationships with our customers, and everyone is so kind and supportive. You could say I studied at other farms and graduated from Winter Moon Roots.”

Santizo hopes that more farmers begin allowing immigrants and minority workers to take leadership positions. A United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) 2019 analysis found that from 2012 to 2014, 98 percent of all farmlands and 98 percent of all farm-related income belonged to white farmers, even though the USDA also estimated 73 percent of agricultural workers to be immigrants.

He encouraged current farm owners to help reverse the trend because breaking into the industry can be near-impossible as an immigrant.

“To start your own business, you need a big chunk of money. Some people have family money or family land or a whole family farm, but a lot of people of color or new immigrants don’t have those privileges,” Santizo explained. “Or, to get that money you need to get a loan, and for that, you need good credit and legal status in this country. You have to know where to go and how to apply. And to start a business in agriculture, you need land and infrastructure. It’s really hard to find land for rent, especially in Hadley where there are a lot of farmers.”

As the new owner, Santizo said he’s working to get a $330,000 loan for his first-year expenses.

He set up a GoFundMe to help offset some of that cost on April 11 and exceeded his original goal of $30,000 in under eight days. Supporters can donate at gofund.me/2eca086a.

“People have been so generous so far, helping me much more than I expected, which makes me feel like I’m starting off stronger with lots of support,” Santizo said. “Some people have left words of encouragement on the page and that has also been really nice. My situation is pretty unique, and I think people are excited to support the farm through this transition so that it can keep going as an important part of the food system in the Valley.”

Santizo said he is excited to continue the farm’s history of donating 10,000 pounds of roots every fall to the Greater Boston Food Bank and other local organizations. He also aims to have a positive impact on his employees, mirroring his relationship with Docter.

“From my time working on farms, I learned how to treat people well – how to make them happy and happy to work with you,” Santizo said. “I want to run my farm in a way that everyone who works with me is happy and wants to come back the next year.”