We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Nadia Mossburg. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Nadia below.

Nadia, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.

At Mossburg Farms, everyone deserves an opportunity to play in the dirt. We believe everyone should have access to nature, regardless of their disability status or where they’ve been. There are many ways we can directly serve our region—from offering fresh, organic produce to the community to engaging with historically underserved groups, including Black, Indigenous, people of color; justice-involved youth and adults; individuals with disabilities; and people in recovery. Traditionally, agriculture and outdoor activities haven’t been very inclusive. We have a unique opportunity to change that—by becoming North Central Florida’s inclusive family farm.

Nadia, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Mossburg Farms is building a disability-inclusive family farm in North Central Florida. As a working farm, we’ll grow and sell a wide selection of produce, herbs and flowers, and spices. Our mission is to plant seeds of hope, health and renewal through everything we do—and eventually, we hope to offer outdoor educational and interactive activities for visitors of all abilities and ages to enjoy.

We’re also looking forward to partnering with other organizations to conduct niche crop research and offer therapeutic horticulture (an alternative to traditional inpatient/outpatient healthcare and rehabilitation services). In alignment with North Central Florida’s Economic Development Strategy, our farm will also promote Florida’s Nature Coast as a tourism destination. From shimmering natural springs to pine flatwoods and cypress swamps, there’s so much to see and explore in this unique region of the Sunshine State.

We are most proud of being committed to inclusivity and equality. We strive to give everyone, regardless of disability status, an opportunity to play in the dirt. As a natural part of the human experience, disability should not impact a person’s right or opportunity to enjoy nature. Additionally, we seek to understand differences and celebrate similarities in all aspects of our work, whether building relationships, partnerships, collaborating or sharing information.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

I was born three months premature and diagnosed with cerebral palsy by age two. As a teen, I wrestled with depression and suicidal thoughts because of my disability. The prospect of managing my own care as an adult felt overwhelming. But at 18, a personal spiritual journey led me to a new understanding about my disability: I could use my experiences to impact the world! After graduate school, I landed a job with the federal government in DC. For nearly 19 years, I’ve led various efforts that expand access to healthcare and employment for the underserved and underrepresented, including people with disabilities.
My husband (and Mossburg Farms co-founder) Matt has a different story. He too has experienced lifelong struggles. By 14, he was abusing drugs and alcohol. By age 20, he was diagnosed with anxiety and depression. Matt lost nearly everything before returning to his childhood faith and taking his recovery seriously.

Through our own journeys of disability, depression and addiction, we’ve seen the therapeutic benefits of farming and the outdoors firsthand. We support the scientific evidence that nature—and simply being outside—contributes to greater physical, mental and emotional well-being. These experiences can be transformative—that’s why we want to share them with others.

In 2018, just two months after marrying, we moved to Florida. Matt and I have built a life around the directives of our wedding officiant. First, that God will give us things to do together that we cannot accomplish individually, and second, like the Japanese art of Kintsugi (putting broken pottery pieces together with gold), with God’s help we can take the broken pieces of our lives and make something beautiful.

That said, this year has been particularly challenging. We’ve had the difficult but necessary job of finding a facility that can give our beloved family member consistent support through some mental health challenges he’s facing. This, combined with juggling our full-time jobs, preparing the farm’s next phase of development, settling into a new area, and regular “life stuff” has been really tough to balance. We know life is messy, but we are pushing through. With the support of our friends and family and a healthy dose of reflection and prayer, we’ve been able to get through this year—one day at a time.

Have you ever had to pivot?

Remote work, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the reminders from our wedding officiant prompted me to re-evaluate my life in 2021. I realized that I want to make a more practical impact on others’ lives, and Mossburg Farms is my opportunity to do that. This isn’t simply about starting an accessible farm—but also bringing our dreams to fruition, and remembering that God truly can make something beautiful out of our stories.
More recently, we’ve had to pivot our plans for the farm. We’ve had to be really honest with ourselves about what’s possible, given our time and limited resources. It stings a little bit. In the end, I think it’s important and healthy to constantly be willing to take a critical look at things, and say, “Maybe this wasn’t the best course of action or the best decision, but at least we know now.”

It’s hard to limit it to one story. To be honest, I feel like some of the most memorable times of my life have come as a result of pivots—across all those areas: life, career, and business. There’s something about having to pivot that tests our character to its very core. Letting go of one thing to potentially gain another and move forward can be scary and uncertain. It takes a measure of humility, faith, courage, resilience, creativity, and perseverance. And, sometimes it can be easy to begin second-guessing whether you’ve made a huge mistake. I’ve learned that pivoting is usually indicative of a blessing in disguise.

Though we have a way to go before the farm launches, I’m thrilled for what’s to come. From our experiences, we know the outdoors can bring people together. Through nature and farming, we have this opportunity to invite historically underrepresented groups to enjoy the farm and have a seat at the table, and be part of what we’re doing.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.mossburgfarms.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/mossburgfarms
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/mossburgfarms

Image Credits
Photo credits: Mossburg Farms (Nadia’s personal photo, and the photo of Matt/Nadia in bulldozer (Nadia is wearing yellow), Ryan Arnst (all the other images uploaded)