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‘Crowdfunding’ drive will help Lomax Farm

Nov. 10 When the future of the Lomax Incubator Farm in Cabarrus County looked grim over the summer, Scott Avett made his voice heard.

A vocalist and banjo player for the nationally known folk rock group The Avett Brothers, Scott helped rally support for the project and pledged to help with both time and money to keep the farm alive. Now Avett is appealing to the community to step up.With a goal to raise $25,000 by Dec. 12, Avett has assisted the farm in putting together a fundraising campaign on barnraiser.us. The crowd funding effort is an attempt by the Carolina Farm Stewardship Association to locate and persuade like-minded residents to give to a cause they are passionate about.

The farm was nearly plowed over by lame-duck politicians

This past summer the farm was dealt a major blow by outgoing members of the Cabarrus County Board of Commissioners. Their $116,489 budget was eliminated.

For more than a week the 31-acre farm was left without power and had no way to harvest crops that had already been planted. At the time Avett, who grew up in Concord and still lives in Concord, said it would be worth dipping into his own funds to assist the project which operated on just $43,627 a year excluding personal costs.

The farm received pledges from more than 60 backers totaling over $6,000 during the first day of the campaign. Those who donate to the project receive tokens of appreciation.

The largest donation of the first day was for $1,500 and that supporter will receive an oil on canvas painting of The Avett Brothers by Sarah West. Various photos, pieces of art, T-shirts, and special event invitations are available for those who support the Save Lomax Farm effort. Scott is featured in a video explaining the project and asking for help on the barnraiser site.

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