Benevolence Farm in Graham will be the first tiny home community in North Carolina for formerly incarcerated women. These seven new tiny homes will house one person per unit.
The groundbreaking ceremony was led by Executive Director of Benevolence Farm Kristen Powers, along with two formerly incarcerated women, the farm’s community advocacy director, Mona Evans, and former farm resident Linda Cayton. North Carolina’s first lady, Anna Stein, delivered the keynote address.
The Benevolence Farm goal is to cultivate leadership and promote sustainable livelihoods with individuals impacted by the criminal legal system in North Carolina, according to its website.
Powers said she is excited to see Benevolence Farm’s hard work come to fruition. It is more difficult to build infrastructure in rural communities, Powers said, and since Benevolence is a small nonprofit, fundraising was something she was unsure about at first.
“It is pretty surreal to see this tiny home groundbreaking ceremony happen today,” Powers said. “We just didn't know if this would even be possible.”
Benevolence Farm donor Dick Fisher said after hearing the farm’s founder, Tanya Jisa, speak at his rotary club, he was inspired to help their mission.
“We've been supporting them for a long time, and it's just wonderful to see how that little seed that she planted has grown into what is just gonna be a marvelous opportunity for these people and so much, so badly needed,” Fisher said.
Benevolence Farm community advocacy director Mona Evans (left) and former Benevolence Farm resident Linda Cayton (right) give a speech about Benevolence Farm on its groundbreaking ceremony in Graham on Nov. 20.
Donations like Fisher’s and the $1.1 million given by the North Carolina Housing Finance Agency, according to NCHFA chair Adam Abram, will help bring these seven new homes to life. Benevolence Farm welcomed its first resident in 2016.
Powers said she has been working hard to help formerly incarcerated women. Powers said she believes it is important to reaffirm that no one is disposable.
“I feel like my whole career and profession is just trying to give the mic over to formerly incarcerated women and center their experiences, because they know what they need and I think that's really important to give power and decision making to them,”
Cayton said although she no longer lives at Benevolence Farm, it is a place that nourishes her spirit.
“I love Benevolence,” Cayton said. “I love the opportunities they gave me and I will always be a part of Benevolence.”
Cayton said that for the women who will live at Benevolence next, she hopes they find their purpose the way she did at the farm.
“They're going to find healing,” Cayton said. “They're going to be able to breathe and figure out what they're gonna do with the rest of their lives. Incarceration is not a life they can go back to anymore, and they have to find their purpose. And I was able to find my purpose while I was here.”
Elon University alum Lauren Hill ’24 used to volunteer at Benevolence Farm during her time at Elon. After hearing about the new tiny homes, she decided to come back and see the progress.
“The growth is so encouraging,” Hill said. “I think they already had a really inspiring mission here and the fact that they have the opportunity to expand on that is really exciting.”