Hope Springs Farm, 201 Trail Road, Hershey, a day program for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, reopened on July 13. Staff members and program participants, called growers, have taken various safety measures.
After more than two months of successful operation, Hope Springs will now expand its program from four groups of three growers each to four groups of four growers. This will increase the opportunities for growers to get back to the farm with 20 additional slots per week. Prior to the COVID-19 shutdown, Hope Springs welcomed 38 growers to the farm each day.
Safety precautions that will continue include requiring all staff members to wear masks and conduct COVID-19 screenings each day and asking the growers to wear masks while acknowledging that some of them are unable to do so. The farm asks families and residential staff to prescreen participants before sending them to the farm, and growers are screened again when they arrive. Growers and staff members wash their hands often and social distance whenever possible. Each group of growers has its own designated indoor space for rests between activities. Participants continue to refrain from going on community outings from the farm.
Opened in 2005, Hope Springs Farm aims to provide a day program that allows participants to maximize their abilities. More than 50 adults are usually enrolled in the program. Growers' activities include feeding and cleaning the animals on the farm, which normally operates at full capacity with alpacas, chickens, sheep, horses, goats, and pigs. Growers also plant and water gardens, make crafts, take classes, and harvest flowers and vegetables. Prior to the pandemic, they volunteered for programs in the community such as Meals on Wheels, the Humane Society, and food banks.
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