Victory Acres, a Dearborn County hydroponic farm using agriculture to transform lives, offers former inmates job training and a fresh start.
"I used to grow the devil's lettuce, and now I'm growing God's lettuce," said Aaron, a client at Victory Acres. He said that the person he is today is not who he was four years ago. He was previously incarcerated in Dearborn County, but always had a passion for hydropnics.
The change began when John Erickson, vice president of Victory Acres, told him about the hydroponics farm. Erickson has spent seven and a half years visiting county jails, conducting Bible studies with inmates. "So many of them are abused, neglected, no hope," Erickson said. "To give them something that's real, that's lasting, it's just life changing."
Victory Acres provides housing to two clients at a time while also teaching skills in hydroponics and conventional farming. The hope is to expand the facility to house more people returning to society.
Read more at WCPO
