A promise fulfilled

Before Rosalie Williams inherited about 240 acres of farm fields and woods in Bakersfield, she made a promise to her longtime friend Levi “Junior” Joyal — whose family had farmed it for nearly a century — that the land would remain a farm.

She fulfilled that promise by conserving the land with us, ensuring it will be available to farmers for generations to come.

Honoring the legacy of Vermont’s farm families

Both Rosalie and Junior grew up in Bakersfield farm families, and their ties go back generations. After years of farming full-time, Rosalie began partnering with Junior at the Joyal dairy in 2009.

“Mr. Joyal saw that I tended to manage the farm in his ways, the old ways,” said Rosalie. “When they came to the decision to pass the farm to me, he made me promise that I would keep it as a farm. It was an easy promise for me to make.”

While farming together, Rosalie and Junior converted the Joyal dairy to organic. But after a lightning strike damaged the barn, Rosalie decided to diversify.

When Junior passed away in 2020, Rosalie continued to farm as the sole owner and worked towards the farm’s protection. She plans to pass the farm on to her younger daughter, Celia.