GUYTON, Ga. — Ten years after the Effingham County School District acquired Honey Ridge, the 324-acre farm continues to grow as an educational resource and a gathering place for the community.

The milestone will be celebrated Saturday, Nov. 7, with the Honey Ridge Fall Festival, scheduled from 3 to 6 p.m. at the Sam Zemurray Arena. The free event will feature games, live music, a corn maze and food booths.

But the celebration marks more than a decade of school field trips and community events. It also recognizes the vision behind the farm and the school district’s effort to preserve its agricultural roots while creating new opportunities for students.

“There’s not a farm in the state of Georgia that’s 300-something acres, that’s owned by a school district, and that raises animals,” said Todd Wall, the district’s director of agriculture.

Wall has been part of Honey Ridge’s development since the district acquired the property in 2016. Other school systems have smaller farms, he said, but Honey Ridge operates as a working farm, with livestock and hay production alongside its educational programs.

A gift with a purpose

Long before it became a school district resource, Honey Ridge was a working farm owned by Sam Zemurray III.

Zemurray came from a family with deep agricultural ties. His grandfather, Samuel Zemurray, became known as “Sam the Banana Man” through his leadership of the United Fruit Co. Zemurray III developed his own interest in agriculture and eventually built a cattle operation at Honey Ridge.

He acquired portions of the property in the late 1960s and purchased the remaining farm in 1971. The operation began with row crops before expanding into cattle, including prized Polled Herefords. Zemurray also produced hay and supported young people involved in agriculture through FFA and 4-H.

By 2016, Zemurray was preparing to retire and move back to Savannah. He wanted to donate his cattle to the school district for its FFA students, but the district needed a place to keep them.

The result was an agreement that transferred the farm, cattle, equipment and other property to the district for less than fair market value. Zemurray also established a scholarship for students pursuing further education in agriculture.

The district began with 23 purebred Polled Hereford cows and a bull. The herd remains connected to the original cattle, continuing a legacy that began decades before the school district took ownership.

A classroom without walls

Honey Ridge’s educational reach began expanding soon after the acquisition. First-grade field trips started in 2017, giving students an opportunity to learn about agriculture outside the traditional classroom.

Students rotate through stations covering topics such as farming, forestry, honeybees and agricultural mechanics. They also take wagon rides to see and feed the animals and explore the corn maze.

Older students help make those visits possible. High school agriculture students prepare seeds for first-graders’ gardens, while Peer Partners assist with activities such as harvesting.

“It’s like all these students are involved,” said Tiffany Altman, the district’s communications director.

For some students, the connection to Honey Ridge lasts well beyond a field trip.

Jack Helmly first visited the farm as a sixth grader at Ebenezer Middle School, helping with first-grade field trips. He continued in FFA through high school and began working at Honey Ridge during his junior year.

After graduation, Helmly became an assistant farm manager. He now works at the farm while attending Savannah Technical College at night to study welding and metalworking.

His work can take him from operating a tractor to vaccinating cattle or helping teach younger students.

“It’s always something different,” Helmly said. “It’s never repetitive.”

Brynn Bradley, 21, also spent years learning at Honey Ridge. Beginning in fifth grade, she showed cattle at the farm through her senior year at Effingham County High School.

Bradley grew up around cattle, but she said the farm’s mentorship program helped her develop the skills needed to prepare and show an animal. She learned showmanship, worked alongside other students and eventually won grand champion with a steer when she was in seventh grade.

The experience also taught her responsibility and how to help younger students coming up behind her.

“You had to be responsible for it, so it taught you how to be responsible for things,” Bradley said.

She enjoyed being outside, working with the animals and helping younger students learn. For her, the farm was more than a place to show cattle. It was a place to build skills and confidence while being part of a team.

From pumpkins to technology

Agricultural education at Honey Ridge reaches into subjects that might not immediately seem connected to a farm.

Middle school students plant and harvest pumpkins and peas. South Effingham Middle School students use pumpkins in lessons involving measurement and science, while culinary students turn the harvest into baked goods.

The products can then be marketed and sold, giving students experience that connects agriculture with business.

“It’s a real farm to table,” Altman said. “But the students are getting real-world learning with math, science, culinary — business.”

High school students also use the property for environmental and scientific study. Effingham County High School students examine pond water and aquatic life, while culinary students learn about livestock and different cuts of meat.

The farm’s partnerships with colleges and universities add another layer of learning.

“We partner with Georgia Tech, University of Georgia, Georgia Southern,” Wall said.

Georgia Tech donated and maintains sensors that collect information about air quality, temperature, water and soil. Students can work with the data, and visitors can access it by scanning QR codes.

Georgia Southern has partnered with the farm on hydroponics and aquaponics projects. The University of Georgia’s Extension program helps with soil and hay testing, while students also take part in crop projects.

FFA students use the property for land-judging activities, examining soil types and quality in prepared soil pits.

A place for the community

Honey Ridge has also become a gathering place beyond the school district’s agricultural programs.

The Hereford House provides space for civic organizations, meetings, conferences, luncheons and school events. The arena hosts livestock shows, while the farm’s roads and fields provide space for cross-country meets, community 5Ks and other activities.

Homeschool groups, private schools and visitors from outside the county also use the property.

Programs involving Peer Partners, Best Buddies and Encompass students reflect the district’s effort to make the farm accessible to students with different needs and abilities.

The property can accommodate everything from a professional meeting to a livestock show, family gathering or community festival.

Celebrating a decade

As part of the anniversary, the district is preparing a documentary about Honey Ridge and its transition from a privately owned farm to an educational resource.

Produced by district videographer Nick Dennison, the documentary traces the property’s history and the people who helped bring it into the school system. It is scheduled to premiere Nov. 5 at an invitation-only dinner honoring friends of Zemurray and those involved in the farm’s transition.

The Fall Festival two days later will give the broader community a chance to celebrate the milestone.

A decade after the district took ownership, Honey Ridge remains a working farm — one where students can learn by doing, discover interests they might not encounter in a traditional classroom and see how those lessons can carry into their futures.

The farm continues to serve the purpose Zemurray envisioned: giving young people a place to learn about agriculture and the opportunities it can provide.