September is #EatLocalMonth and what better way to eat local, eat fresh and support your neighbors than to check out a new farmstand in Olympia? Adam and Marilee Williams are the proud owners of Serenity Springs Farmstand, and are excited for you to try the literal fruits of their labors!
On their 2.5-acre farm, they are currently producing farm fresh eggs, produce and flowers. Future plans include handcrafted soaps and gifts, and hope to incorporate gluten-free baked goods for sale soon. Get to know them below and then visit their farmstand.
TT: Are you from Olympia, if not, what drew you to the area?
Marilee: We’re both from the Pacific Northwest and we found this peaceful piece of land to settle on in 2021. We immediately fell in love with the quiet and serene country setting surrounded by tall trees and wildlife located in Olympia, just on the outskirts of Littlerock. It has a small-town feel that’s both relaxing and inviting.
TT: Where does the name come from?
Marilee: This natural space here seems to draw people in. Visitors often say they feel a sense of peace as soon as they step on the property. They’ve expressed how their worries seem to fade and they feel calm and relaxed during their stay. We are surrounded by a canopy of tall trees, which can root a deep sense of calm, connection, and restoration.
TT: Why did you want a working farm?
Marilee: Working our little 2.5-acre land takes me back to my roots where I spent my childhood in the small town of Toledo, climbing trees, exploring fields, nibbling off of fruit trees and wild berries while playing outside without a care in the world. We lived a simple life where we raised a garden for produce and cattle for beef. My mother cooked and baked everything from scratch using fresh eggs, farm-fresh milk and grass-fed beef. At a young age, I took an interest in cooking and baking and have developed my culinary skills throughout my years working in the restaurant industry and having owned a restaurant with catering.
Developing our Homestead and Farmstand allows us to be creative and work with our hands the way that we both enjoy. We spend most of our leisure time working in the garden or out in the yard. I get to be creative by coming up with new ideas while Adam helps and supports bringing the visions to life, as well as helping maintain the daily operations.
While I’m juggling multiple projects, Adam is the anchor that makes sure the plants get watered and the chickens get fed, etc. Let’s be honest, the chickens and plants wouldn’t survive without his daily watering and feeding, as I may have drifted off to start another project. It’s a team effort that works together effectively. Adam constructed our chicken coop and run and builds whatever else needs built around the property.
TT: Tell us about your sustainability and community focus.
Marilee: We try to repurpose when we can, using what we have available to us. We love supporting our community by buying locally. We get our beef from a neighboring farm and our milk from a local dairy. We buy starter plants from other neighboring homesteads and love to stop alongside the road for fruits and flowers. We feel a sense of community with the neighboring farms and homesteads and love to support them as well. It’s a great community and we feel honored to be welcomed as a part of it.
We would like to develop opportunities in the community for fun crafting classes and various workshops including education in gardening, raising crops, seed saving, repurposing, and the benefits of foraging. We’re getting a lot of requests for soap making classes so we’re working on getting one planned and scheduled.
TT: What made you choose these products?
Marilee: Developing our Homestead allows me to use my creativity in my wide array of interests. Not only with gardening, cooking, and baking, but also in formulating a variety of hand-crafted soaps and skincare with quality ingredients that I can feel good about using. At Serenity Springs, it is important to us to use natural ingredients with traits and qualities like organic, extra virgin, cold-pressed, and unrefined, with a focus on nourishing our bodies through our food as well as our home and body products.
I am passionate about growing clean food as well as developing clean products. My creative side enjoys formulating recipes with foods and with products that I can feel good about putting in my body as well as on my body.
TT: Your Facebook mentions gluten-free living and consulting, what’s that?
Marilee: After a year of severe illness with no answers or hope, I was diagnosed with celiac disease. My journey to healing was a long and hard struggle. I remember how difficult and expensive it was to learn how to shop and eat safely for my condition. Over the years, I have learned to cook and bake gluten-free recipes that are not only palatable but delicious! I am often told by people who taste my dishes and desserts that they can’t tell that my food is gluten-free. I love to pass on my tips and tricks to others to help them in their gluten-free journey.
My business is designed to assist through guidance and education if you or a family member have become gluten sensitive or have been diagnosed with Celiac and you feel overwhelmed and confused. Through my consulting, I can help others learn what took me years to navigate by sharing my experience and knowledge. I offer a free initial consultation to explore their goals, answer questions, and discover if my services are a good fit for their needs.
The Serenity Springs Farmstand will be open year-round with new products throughout the seasons. Check their Facebook and Instagram pages for various festivals and events that they will be attending as well. They are hoping to develop a website for online sales this winter.
