PerspectAbility has officially wrapped up our third successful tulip season, and we cannot thank our community enough for supporting us—not just in buying our tulips and taking photos at our farm, but always being a part of planting them as well. You all help us plant over 100,000 tulip bulbs each October. And when they bloom in spring, you come and visit us again to take home not only tulips, but beautiful memories and new friendships. Our organization’s theme this year is GROW, and we have done just that. We’ve hired our first Executive Director and will soon welcome a new member to our Board of Directors. We’re forming new partnerships with other local organizations and businesses, we’re finalizing a pilot location for our Transition Academy, and filling our calendar with events. But more on all of that later. For now, we want to share what this year’s GROWTH has meant to Kelli Jensen, who is one of our founders and Mom to one of True Colors Farm’s most enthusiastic employees.
“I feel BIG feelings this year. I know we have said ‘this has been a year of growth’ no less than one billion times, but I think the beauty lies in seeing the growth outside of just our leadership team, Leslye, Becky, Karah, Natalie, and Kelli. Outside of PerspectAbility itself. We have poured every emotion, every muscle, every ounce of brain power—everything we have into PerspectAbility. And it all stems from the love we have for our own children and the desire to make this world a better place. It’s almost like we know something really special that not everyone knows [yet], and we want to share that beauty with the entire world. But to have connected…bonded with others and to see their growth. Now, that is powerful. This is only our third year operating a tulip field, and to see our little ripples creating impactful waves in the lives of strangers turned friends, turned family…it pushes me to work even harder. We have already seen with our own eyes the successes of being intentional champions for others, and we’re just getting started. It excites me to see where we can go with those in our community rallying alongside us!
Nothing fills my heart more than tulip season. I enjoy every single exhausting moment of it. I love the joy and the pride on the faces of our employees. Their joy and pride of working hard and receiving a paycheck. I love seeing their self-confidence build and grow. I love watching the interactions between employees and visitors. I relish the conversations had, whether it is asking meaningful questions, a mama pouring her heart out to me about her struggles, the kiddos running through the fields, picking their favorite flowers, and then watching their bouquets get wrapped. I love hearing visitors tell us, “I just love what you are doing here!” What I enjoy most is sitting back and watching people loving on other people. Learning from each other. Building relationships. Smiling. Laughing. Showing kindness. All together in our tulip field. And hopefully, just hopefully, taking that loving lesson forward in their everyday lives.”
— Kelli Jensen
Board President & Co-Founder
This is what we mean by creating inclusive spaces. Our mission for inclusion doesn’t just begin and end at True Colors Farm, and we are not the only agents of change. We appreciate, from the bottom of our hearts, all of you in our community who are growing and changing along with us.