Pay It Forward
Pay It Forward
Giving
If you or someone you know needs assistance to be able to afford local food, we are here to help! Through our Pay It Forward program, we offer $125 gift cards to low income households in our community that can be used to buy groceries, whether produced by our farm or one of our partners. Gift cards can be redeemed at Cooks’ Country Store, at our booth at the Saranac Lake Farmers’ Market, or through our website (we offer free local delivery).
This program is designed for households at or below the ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) income thresholds:
1 person - $28,500 or below
2 people - $40,500 or below
3 people - $55,000 or below
4 people - $65,000 or below
If you are eligible, we invite you to complete our Pay It Forward program sign up form. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis; we will reach out when we have funding available to make an award. (Only one gift card will be awarded per household per year.)
We believe everyone should be able to buy fresh, local food. In the U.S. today, approximately 13.7% of households are facing food insecurity. Part of our mission as farmers is to combat hunger and diet-related illness by producing high quality, nutritious things for our community to eat, but we can’t afford to do it all on our own. We created our Pay It Forward program in 2026 as a way for our neighbors to help one another while expanding access to local food.
This program allows us to provide assistance to those who need it while maintaining their dignity. Our recipients are awarded with a gift card that they can use to purchase groceries at our store, at our booth at the farmers’ market, or through our website, just like any other customer. This enables them to purchase whatever it is that they need the most, whether that be meat, eggs, milk, yogurt, bread, produce, or something else.
If you’re able, you can help to support a neighbor by contributing to our Pay It Forward program. Even a small amount helps provide local food to someone who couldn’t otherwise afford it. All contributions are greatly appreciated!