Good Neighbor Podcast: Youngstown

E3: Beyond the Harvest: The Hidden Work of a Family Farm

• Stacey Willis & Kim Sisco • Episode 3

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Discover the remarkable journey of White House Fruit Farm through four generations of family stewardship in this heartwarming conversation with Kim Sisco. What began with turkeys and a superintendent grandfather has blossomed into one of northeast Ohio's most beloved agricultural destinations.

Kim reveals the fascinating evolution from simple lawn sales to their current year-round operation featuring three kitchens, a deli, and a full market of fresh, local produce. Behind those perfect strawberries you pick in June lies years of planning and cultivation—just one of the farming misconceptions she gently corrects. Whether you're a young family packing school lunches, an older adult seeking a small sweet treat, or anyone craving the quintessential fall farm experience, White House Fruit Farm welcomes you.

Perhaps the most valuable insight comes when Kim discusses navigating the notoriously difficult transition between generations in a family business. With candor and wisdom, she explains how they preserved both relationships and business continuity through "heartaches and headaches," creating a blueprint for future succession. Most touching is her genuine appreciation for customers: "If we didn't have customers, we'd all be working different jobs and growing fruits and vegetables as a hobby." This profound gratitude for community support exemplifies why White House Fruit Farm has become more than a business—it's a cherished institution where relationships flourish alongside the crops. Visit them at 9249 Youngstown Salem Road just outside Canfield, and experience this special place for yourself!

Speaker 1:

This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Stacey Willis.

Speaker 2:

Hi and welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast. Are you in need of some fresh produce and gorgeous scenery? Well, it may all be closer than you think. Today I have the pleasure of welcoming your good neighbor, Kim Sisko from White House Fruit Farms. Kim, how are you?

Speaker 3:

I'm well.

Speaker 2:

Thank you for having us. Thank you for joining us. We're so excited to learn all about White House Fruit Farms, so let's jump in and tell us all about it.

Speaker 3:

Oh fine, so we are a fourth generation fruit and vegetable farm. We started off, actually, with turkeys and switched over shortly thereafter to orchard stock, and so we have all fruits and vegetables and herbs and flowers now and several events, full kitchen, full market, open year round so you said fourth generation.

Speaker 2:

So how did this all start? What was? What's the history behind it?

Speaker 3:

yes, so our grandfather bought the property. So the property has been in our family line for years. We have the deed that it goes way back. But anyway, our grandfather built a house there, married and had nine children and they were raising turkeys at the time and he also was the first superintendent of Mahoning County and an educator, and his wife was a teacher. But nine children later they started an orchard stock and fruits and vegetables and started just selling off the lawn and then just grew from there. We moved into eventually our old barn that was on the property. It was a functional barn and then we've remodeled Well, I shouldn't say remodel, we did remodel when we first moved in, but then we've added on and added on and so now we have a kitchen Well, we actually have three kitchens and a deli as well.

Speaker 2:

What are some myths or misconceptions people tend to have about the farming industry?

Speaker 3:

Oh boy. So when guests come out to harvest, let's say picking strawberries the strawberries are going to come on here in June and that's one of our first you pick crops Guests come out and see plentiful, beautiful, flavorful strawberries everywhere and they think that those strawberries just kind of happen to be there over the last couple months, not realizing that they're planted one year, two year, three years ahead and don't really have a viable crop for the first several years. So they see the fun and easy but not all of the work that happens to have that come to fruition.

Speaker 2:

Who are your target customers and how do you attract them?

Speaker 3:

Gosh. Target customers are anybody that wants fresh, local, whether it be lunch meat or whether it be your fruits and vegetables or your flowers or anything fresh and local. That's our customer. So in the fall everybody comes to the farm. It just kind of clicks that the weather's cool and it's harvest time and you want to come and get your fall decorations and your pumpkins and apples and have that farm experience. But year round we have mothers with young children, people that are packing lunches, some older people that just need a small sweet treat and they want something that's fresh.

Speaker 2:

So just about across the board everyone.

Speaker 3:

Outside of the farm. What do you do for fun? Oh gosh. Personally, I love nature and anything physical, so if it's running, walking, climbing, bouldering, anything that gives my body a challenge, that's outside is where I want to be All right.

Speaker 2:

Well, let's switch gears for just a minute. Can you describe a hardship or challenge that you have overcome in your life and how it made you stronger stronger anything come to mind sure so as a business.

Speaker 3:

um, as a business, transitioning from my grandfather's leadership and ownership into the next generation was a big challenge, even though we worked in the business. It was very hard, family-wise, being fourth generation, you know coming through all those generations, all those opinions, all those thoughts. A lot of businesses don't survive that and we were able to navigate through that, with, you know, some heartaches and headaches as well, but definitely stronger for it and that gives us a blueprint into the future on how to navigate through the next generations coming so business-wise. That gives us a blueprint into the future on how to navigate through the next generations coming so business wise. That would be a challenge that we made it through.

Speaker 2:

And Kim, please tell our listeners what you want them. One thing you want them to remember about White House Fruit Farms.

Speaker 3:

Oh, how much we appreciate our customers. We have often said if we didn't have customers we would all be working different jobs and growing fruits and vegetables as a hobby, just for ourselves, because that's our love. So to know that we really appreciate those relationships, those regular customers that we have, build friendships with, that we see off of the farm and stand and chat with, because we know a little bit about each other from them coming whether it be customers that come just in the fall, that we see yearly, or ones that come every week or a couple of times a week that we truly, truly do appreciate those people and the relationship that we have in the community.

Speaker 2:

And how can our listeners find you guys? What can they do to find White House Fruit Farm?

Speaker 3:

We're super easy to find. We are at 9249 Youngstown Salem Road, which is Route 62, just right outside of Canfield, and so we're open every day, save a few holidays. So it's easy to come out and visit us nine to five every day, except Sunday, which is 11 to five, and then whitehousefruitfarmcom at our website. We'll give you a ton of information, and we have some upcoming events as well, and they're on there, and we're also on Instagram, we're on Snap, we're on Twitter all those things you know. We're on Snap, we're on Twitter. All those things you know, all those areas.

Speaker 2:

TikTok. You know wherever you want to go, all right, well, kim, I really appreciate you being on the show, and we wish you and your business the very best.

Speaker 3:

Thank you so much for having us.

Speaker 1:

Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor podcast podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to gmpyungstowncom. That's gmpyungstowncom, or call 330-355-3122.