Introducing the Anne Saxelby Fund
It is with great sorrow that we write you this note because Anne is no longer with us. We all adored Anne, her playful whimsical radiant energy, grace, unpretentiousness, and love she gave to everyone she crossed paths with. From her tiny shop at Essex Market her smile and hard work changed the way Americans buy food. She was a remarkable entrepreneur, colleague, neighbor, friend, mother, wife, sister, and daughter who realized in only 40 years many lifetimes of accomplishments. She is missed every single day and we will forever ache that she left us so soon.
But Anne was never slowed down by sadness or challenges, no matter how severe – the moment she woke up she was ready to take on the world, and so to honor Anne we must try to do the same. We are writing to you today, exactly a month after her passing, to thank you so very much for your support of the Anne Saxelby Legacy Fund and to send you some updates.
Pam Saxelby and I have established a Board of Directors and applied for non-profit 501(c)(3) status — for now we operate through the not-for-profit Slow Food USA who has graciously agreed to take in funds on our behalf. To date we have already raised almost $200,000. A website and logo are being designed as we write to you.
The Anne Saxelby Legacy Fund is established as an homage to Anne, and our mission must emulate Anne’s goals and vision. As many of you know Anne first apprenticed on Cato Corner Farm and later in France and Italy and it was those experiences that led to her changing the world through Saxelby Cheesemongers.
The work of the Fund will begin in earnest starting in the summer of 2022 when we have committed to pay all the costs related to sending up to 40 young adults to sustainable farms of all types to spend one month learning an artisan trade. After the on-the-farm experience, Anne’s Fund hopes to facilitate funding through micro investments to help participants open small businesses around the country, emulating what Anne did. In the coming months we will put together the infrastructure to develop this program which we liken to a modern-day agriculture-themed Peace Corps.
We intend to do great things in Anne’s name — thank you so much for helping to make that happen. Please tell your friends about our work and email us with ideas for host farms, educators who can connect us to potential apprentices interested in learning an agricultural trade, fundraising ideas, or anything else you can think of — we would love to hear from you!
Sincerely,
Patrick Martins, Pam Saxelby, and the Anne Saxelby Legacy Fund
www.SlowFoodUSA.org/Saxelby