Hello Dear Readers,

Josh here. I’m a member of Sandhill Farm, which is three miles down the road from Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage. I’m going to share a bit of my story with you, and then about a new business that I started here called Full Circle Forest Products.

I’ve been part of the “tri-communities” (Dancing Rabbit, Sandhill Farm, and Red Earth Farms) for seven years. Before this segment of my life, I lived in Chicago where I was attending DePaul University and studying Environmental Studies. The more I learned about the world of sustainability, the more I wanted to get my hands in dirt. I began yearning for a world where I could practice subsistence farming, natural building, and be intentional about community. I wrote applications to intern at Sandhill Farm and Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage, and applied for a visitor period at East Wind Community in the Ozarks in 2014. Sandhill rejected me! I will never let my partner, who was the intern manager at the time, live this down. We later got married and had a kid.

I was graciously accepted to intern with the Critter Collective at Dancing Rabbit. I stuffed my backpack with life’s necessities and biked to the train station. The train carried me and my bike to Quincy, Illinois. My phone didn’t get reception, I didn’t have a map, I didn’t have enough water. Because I was trying to avoid traffic, I took gravel roads… with no gas stations, or stores, or anywhere to get water for long stretches. I had hand-written directions onto a crumpled napkin before my phone died. Somehow, I made it to Dancing Rabbit!

That summer I learned to take care of livestock, build with cob, and prepare food for large groups. Most importantly, I learned what it’s like to live in a tent and be emotionally vulnerable with my peers. Quickly, I fell in love with having access to forests, prairies, gardens, ponds, and earth-based people every day. I had thought that I’d like living this way, and I was absolutely right. While I loved Dancing Rabbit, I was drawn to income-sharing and subsistence farming. At the time, Sandhill Farm was a full income-sharing community that produced 80% of its food. This included all of its grain, beans, vegetables, and sweeteners. I wanted to experience this culture. 

Trish changed her mind and wanted me to come intern at Sandhill. I interned there in the fall of 2014. Sandhill “of ye old” was AMAZING. Don’t get me wrong, I love Sandhill now, and Ye Old Sandhill had its issues too; but some describe the first years I was there as the end of the Golden Years. During that time, there were a few elder members that were wanting to step away from body-intensive labor and do more off-farm income-producing work. In exchange, the others managed the gardens and farm to produce the food for the community to subsist. This balance didn’t last forever. Some elder members moved away from Sandhill for various personal reasons, and the income-to-expense ratio was thrown off. Then came years of squabbling, fear, and disconnection. Somewhere in the midst of all this (I’d say in between the “Golden Years” and the “Falling Apart Years”), I joined Trish’s family which consists of Emory (13), and Emory’s Dad, Jeaux. We all lived and still live together as family. Trish and I got married and had a child named Lacan who will turn 4 this February.

Our family ended up being the only members of Sandhill remaining. We wanted to stay and help Sandhill transition, and are also a large family that takes a long time to decide anything, and so were the slowest to find a place to which to leave. I can’t express how grateful we are to have stayed.

 Trish and Jeaux both trained to become organic farm inspectors. I was a full-time Dad during the first years of Lacan’s life. We spent much time in rural parks and conservation areas while Trish did inspections all over the Midwest.

I’ve always loved being in the forest. I can sit on a mossy log, listening to the sounds of the forest for hours. I also love running a chainsaw and have done forest management work since I was 15 years old. In 2019 I completed a Professional Timber Harvester certification from the Missouri Forest Products Association and bought a beat-up sawmill from our neighbors. I got wood fever and started working for local logging companies to accelerate my skills and learn about the industry. I began providing custom sawmill services for my local community. Neighbors began bringing me logs or I’d bring my sawmill to their farm. Some folks at Dancing Rabbit have utilized my services to fill their design/build needs. 

In 2020 I learned about a Missouri state grant offered through the Environmental Improvement and Energy Resources Agency (EIERA) which provides funding for equipment to process landfill waste into marketable products. I knew that tree services were tossing logs in the landfill or burning them, so I started calling around to see if I could find Tree Services with which to collaborate. I quickly found that NEMO Tree Service in Kirksville, Missouri was excited to share his logs. He had been leaving them with a farmer who dumped them into a ravine.

I whipped up a grant that would fund my sawmill to expand into an outfit capable of manufacturing recycled logs into finished furniture. Lumber buyers and furniture makers from around the region offered Letters of Intent to Purchase our products. Ultimately, I was able to provide enough evidence that I had a supply of logs, a reasonable method of production, and commitments (however loose) from buyers. I was awarded the grant in December of 2020 for a new sawmill that can cut 58” wide, a skid steer, a vacuum kiln to dry the lumber, and a flattening machine to plane slabs too wide for our planer. 

It took many months of working with our regional electric supplier (Northeast Power Cooperative) to secure the other 50% of equipment financing. We ordered the equipment and bought a parcel of land from Sandhill to establish a permanent sawmill. For now, we’re renting a 7000 sq. ft. warehouse in the nearby town of Memphis to house our dry kiln and woodshop. Eventually, we plan to erect a warehouse on our land next to Sandhill.

Alongside upcycled Tree Service logs, we are utilizing American Tree Farm Certified logs from Sandhill farm to produce custom furniture and construction lumber. We’re making gorgeous dining room tables, desks, countertops, and coffee tables from 100% ethically sourced material, all while generating employment opportunities for the tri-communities. We work at all scales, from small charcuterie boards to new home builds and custom dining room sets.

While we’ve gotten Full Circle Forest Products “off the ground,” we have had some setbacks and challenges. A local furniture manufacturer that originally agreed to purchase 20 tabletops per month from us has backed out of the agreement. Because of this change, we’ve had to increase our quantity of direct-to-consumer sales. Without an urban storefront, we’re working hard to establish our online presence. However, we are confident that people like you can see the value in purchasing handmade, sustainably produced furniture from Missouri communitarians over purchasing from a big-box store or overseas.

Please help us succeed! Here’s how you can make the difference between whether we last as a business or not: 

• Do you know anyone in the business of doing things with wood (carpenters, contractors, cabinet-makers, furniture creators, craftsfolk, etc.) who would like a more sustainable and affordable lumber source? Email us!
• Are you about to rehab, renovate or build a house? We can partner with you (or your contractor) to supply raw materials or build furniture for your space. Email us!
• Follow our facebook page and give us a (thumb up emoji) for anything you appreciate!

I don’t want to make this sound melodramatic, but your support of Full Circle really could make a critical difference during these precarious early years. We know that 60% of businesses fail in the first three years. While we are still in that window, we want to be one that succeeds- because buying and building sustainably is too important NOT to do it.  

Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Etsy to follow our story. You can learn more about our business at our website. And contact me (Josh Clarkweiss) directly at [email protected] to discuss specific projects and builds!

I hope your deep winter days are filled with coziness, connection, and well-being.

In Sawdust & Gratitude,

Joshua Clarkweiss - Sandhill Farm & Full Circle Forest Products LLC