The vision of AntFarm came through a community known as RedWind which follows an earth-based way of life focused on the health of individuals, communities, and the earth. Founded in 1997 from the teachings of Frank Fools Crow, the RedWind community listened to his words, “Survival of the world depends on our sharing what we have and working together.”
Frank Fools Crow
Although the RedWind community humbly practiced a Native American Lakota spiritual tradition, they chose to become involved in the many issues facing the people of the earth.
In 1999, the community took a nonprofit organization status to build stronger alliances with others and develop greater ways of helping. This decision continued to focus the RedWind community in providing traditional teachings to encourage helping the next generation to become good people.
In 2001, RedWind began partnering with other non-profit organizations serving high-risk youth to ask about programming for their clients. The Council of RedWind began to develop teachings, ceremonies, and programs for youth. RedWind was entirely volunteer based with thousands of hours of volunteer service provided each year to youth.
In 2008, the RedWind community and Board of Directors chose to adopt the name Woape. Woape means hope in the Lakota language. This change supported the RedWind community to remain as a community of service living in the teachings of Frank Fools Crow while developing programs in Sandy, Oregon to provide youth and family supports, skills training, and activities.
In 2010, under the leadership of co-founders Two Foxes Singing (Nunpa) and Damon Schwab, the deconstruction of the Gardner Plumbing building began with a team of eight youth. In April of that year, the name AntFarm was adopted to represent the spirit of collaboration, purpose, and community effort taking root in Sandy, Oregon. Throughout the remainder of the year, re-construction of the space occurred to create AntFarm Indoors, consisting of the AntFarm Café and Bakery, Axis Learning Center, and the Cultural Arts Center. In 2011, we initiated outdoor programs, as we began YouthCore with trail building and the AntFarm Garden. Quickly the indoor and outdoor programs grew, as the community was strong.
Nunpa and Tanner during the building deconstruction
AntFarm quickly addressed service needs locally and from others interested in our model. Chemawa Indian School and Dutch educators sought our services, so we supported program development with these communities. Locally, we began offering community service, opened the farmers market, implemented outdoor hiking programs, and continued in community and public land projects. By 2016, AntFarm had matured from a grassroots service effort into a multi-program organization with growing credibility—establishing nine programs with strong outcomes and a focused leadership team.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, AntFarm was able to meet the needs of the community and thrive by providing wraparound support, rental assistance, and basic needs services, which led to the addition of Housing Services and Nuevo Futuro to AntFarm’s programs. In 2020, AntFarm expanded into Estacada with our Youth and Family Services and Workforce Development programs. In 2022 we purchased the Harmony Bakery in Estacada to eventually bring our Café & Bakery and Community Resource Center model to the area. That same year, we expanded into Molalla, launching programs and services that led to the opening of the Molalla YouthHub in 2023. We have also grown to include Community Wildfire Defense, Construction, and the Community Workforce Partnership. AntFarm services have continued to thrive—building a community spirit rooted in support for basic needs, life skills, work skills, and educational growth.
