Katie Hanks is reversing a curse of the North Country.
Often, talented young people attend college, move to a metro area, sample the faster-paced lifestyles and amenities find challenging, high-paying jobs, and put down roots.
Chalk up these losses to St. Lawrence County “brain drain.’’
But Hanks and her husband Gary Guinta flipped the script two years ago, trading their urban lifestyle for The Clover Patch Farm in Morristown, where they have started a flower business and become known for their herd of babydoll sheep.
Hanks’ odyssey began when she graduated from Ogdensburg Free Academy and enrolled at the University of Vermont.
“I didn’t think there was a place on Earth that was colder than Ogdensburg,’’ she recalled. So after discussions with her roommate, a San Francisco native, Hanks made the cross-country move. She earned a bachelor’s degree in American History from the University of San Francisco, then completed a Master’s degree in Business Analytics from Syracuse University.
In her work life, she met Guinta, a native of Bay Shore on Long Island who played lacrosse at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine. He worked as a senior salesman for a technology firm.
“We were living in Charlotte, N.C., and we really wanted to move to a more rural area,’’ explained Hanks, 32.
Her husband didn’t need much convincing.
“I just fell in love with the place and said, ‘We should just do it.’ ’’
They were visiting family in Ogdensburg when they had an epiphany.
“Our dog Betty got diagnosed with meningitis in May 2023 and completely lost the ability to use her back legs,’’ Hanks said. “After going through chemotherapy and physical therapy, she relearned to walk. We took her to Ogdensburg to visit family and she ran for the first time. Seeing her happiness and health made us decide that the North Country is where we should go.’’
Guinta left his tech job to focus full-time on the farm, although he works two nights a week as a server at Hosmer’s Marina. Katie works remotely as a workforce manager for Lowe’s Home Improvement’s corporate office.
“We had been used to living in a city for 10 years so everything has been a big adjustment,’’ Hanks said. “It has been a big lesson in slowing down and living more intentionally.’’
Their families and friends have embraced the move.
“We have non-stop visitors throughout the summer from family coming from Florida, Texas and Long Island,’’ Hanks said. “They have all fallen in love with the beauty of the North Country.’’
By Hanks’ account, she and Guinta are the fourth owners of the farm on English Settlement Road. Hanks said the McDougal family had extensive holdings from Morristown to Black Lake. The Menhennet family bought it, then the Barse family, all working the rich soil as a dairy farm.
Hanks and Guinta dubbed it The Clover Patch Farm because they identified five varieties of clover growing there.
“Clover helps pollinators and improves soil health, two things we care deeply about,’’ Hanks said.
Their main source of income comes from their flower business. They sell at community markets, provide wedding bouquets and arrange bridal flowers. The underpinning of the business has a been a herd of babydoll sheep, usually known as a source of cashmere wool. But Hanks and Guinta found an alternative use.
“We use our sheep’s wool for fertilizer and mulch in our garden,’’ Hanks said. “Wool is an excellent source of nitrogen and slow-releases water into soil.’’
The business won’t die out when cold weather arrives. The couple has secured a grant to build a high tunnel hydroponics system to raise tulips during the winter. They also conduct tours, host community groups, have added chickens, and started a flower subscription service.
Guinta said he grew up with the mentality that upstate New York was anything north of Rockland County. But the Adirondacks and St. Lawrence River have broadened his perspective. Now he is a full-time farmer.
“We saw an opportunity and one of the main reasons we opened our business was that we wanted to bring something new and fresh to the North Country,’’ he said.
Hanks pinches herself when she thinks of her childhood setting with a new outlook.
“I find it absolutely bananas that you can cross the bridge and find a major capital in Ottawa that is so close,’’ she said. The river is beautiful, the Thousand Islands too. Even though I grew up here, I was floored how pretty it was.’’
Now they enjoy the beauty everyday.
Morristown native Jim Holleran is a retired teacher and sports editor from Rochester. Reach him at jimholleran29@gmail.com or view past columns under “Reflections of River Rat’’ at https://hollerangetsitwrite.com/blog/
