The Cohen Family

Dear New Village Family,
 
As many of you know, the Cohen Family has been terminated from their employment at The New Village School and have been asked to vacate the Two Owl Farm by the end of July. 

They are suffering from tremendous financial stress and we are reaching out to the whole community to help them through this difficult time.
 
For the past 11 years, Mr. Cohen and his family have dedicated their lives to the school, and for the last 2.5 years, they have been working to bring to life the dilapidated land that the school purchased in 2017.  Thanks to Gabe and his family, today it is a thriving farm, home to alpacas, goats, and chickens with a bountiful vegetable garden and fruit orchard where our children learn and play.
 
Gabe, Alexis, Myles and Aiden made the Two Owl Farm their permanent home in October of 2019 to care for the animals and the property full time.  They downsized from their home into tiny homes attached to trailers.  Furthermore, their house, which had been flooded in 2016 (wiping them out financially), still had some residual post-flood work to be completed, but because Gabe was so focused on the farm, it sat empty for 6 months before they could rent it.  These sacrifices were all made with the long-term vision of spending the next 10 years living on the farm.
 
They now find themselves unable to afford the mortgage of their own home or health insurance coverage for their family.  They also have very little furniture or belongings to take with them into their next living situation.  This is happening of course in the middle of a pandemic and severe economic recession, which makes it all the more devastating. 
 
In honor of this family that has given so much to our children, our school, and our community; in honor of Mr. Cohen, who has been a part of the team and vision of NVS since its inception, who has lovingly taught us all to love and to carefully pay attention to nature’s cues, who has prepared our children both academically and emotionally for life outside of NVS, and whose legacy will richly live on in the beautiful Two Owl Farm, let us all lend a hand to help carry them through this very difficult time.
 
These funds will help them cover their moving costs, purchase the furniture they need, and hopefully also get them through a couple of months of rent or mortgage payments while they work to get back on their feet. 
 
Though asking for and accepting help is hard for all of us to do, we know that the Cohen family deeply appreciates the outpouring of love and support in this time of great need.  

Thank you for your help.