We are grateful to Genomind for their original blogpost about autism entrepreneurship and Green Bridge Growers, which we offer here to provide background about our work and mission and the great need for meaningful employment for those on the autism spectrum. 

Managing Autism Spectrum Disorder: An Entrepreneur’s Success Story 

If you travel to north central Indiana, you can go to Green Bridge Growers, a commercial greenhouse filled with herbs, lettuces and sunflowers. At the site you’ll meet Chris Tidmarsh, a 30-year-old entrepreneur with degrees in chemistry, environmental studies, the French language and a robust passion for agriculture.

Chris also happens to have autism. He’s one of the 3.5 million Americans who live with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

After being abruptly fired from an environmental research job because of his difficulties communicating, Chris and his mother, Jan Pilarski, teamed up to create Green Bridge.

“There is a deep, deep need for hope and jobs,” Jan said. She often shares the story of her and her son’s success with other parents whose children have autism to illustrate that a successful career is possible.

Living with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Chris’ path is similar to that of others who are building their own businesses—he possesses the knowledge and vision to accomplish his goal. On the job, he acts as a mentor to those who work with him, and his hard work and dedication are paying off. In the fiscal year 2018, Green Bridge is projecting a revenue of $80,000 and profit of $30,000.

Unlike other entrepreneurs, Chris encounters a number of daily challenges. He has a difficult time assessing tasks, delegating them to others and executing his vision. While he dreamed up Green Bridge, he leans on his mother and network of support to fulfill his vision.

His story resembles that of other entrepreneurs who have ASD. Many have difficulties with executive functioning and may have a limited ability to follow rules of social interaction. Difficulty maintaining eye contact and reading facial expressions can create issues as an entrepreneur works to build up his or her business.

High-Functioning Autism in The Workplace
Adults who have ASD have an estimated 80% to 90% unemployment rate. “One of the ways people choose to address this is by creating a business that allows them to be self-employed,” says Angela Geiger, CEO of Autism Speaks, an advocacy and support organization.

By creating their own companies, people on the spectrum can develop a work environment that meets their comfort level. Entrepreneurs who have autism thrive in self-created workplaces and often find success through building a network of supporters.

To help someone on the spectrum achieve self-employment, supporters can identify and build on the individual’s skillset, instead of trying to change a behavior or push them to do something they can’t do.

Growing Up With Autism
Chris was diagnosed with autism as a preschooler. Since he was their first child, his mother says she and her husband didn’t notice certain behaviors that may have concerned a more experienced parent. As he grew up, his parents focused on immediate next steps–elementary school, middle school, high school and college.
After graduating college, Chris successfully landed his first job.

“I was doing a lot of office work and behind the computer. I’m not the best with that style,” he said. “They generally communicate verbally, and I’m more of a visual learner.”

His time as an environmental researcher didn’t last long and after just three months he was let go. Back at home, his parents noticed that his peers with degrees who were the spectrum were also unemployed.

“It was hard for us to have this young man with a lot of ability unable to use it,” said his father, Jay Tidmarsh. “That was really concerning. I really believe in the importance of work. It’s a part of who you are.”

During this time, Chris dug into his love of the earth and became a master gardener. From there, the idea of Green Bridge started to grow. He and his mother began researching viable business ideas. Together they visited several farms and a software business set up by a young man on the spectrum.

​Beating The Autism Workplace Odds
With the help of his family, Chris began to develop an idea for his business. One key component was for him to offer training for others who have autism. Jan applied to a program designed to help startup social enterprises through her alma mater, Notre Dame.

During their presentation, Chris spoke about the difficulty people who have autism face when trying to find work. The result? They won the social-impact prize, which provided $15,000.

From there, Chris and Jan met with farmers and wholesalers to determine market potential and set a course for business development and expansion.

The success of Green Bridge Growers has helped Chris in a number of ways. He’s more comfortable conducting tours of the greenhouse and speaks about communication challenges that those on the autism spectrum face in front of large audiences. He’s also moved out of his parents house and is living with a friend who is also on the spectrum.

“My goal is to be self-sufficient,” Chris said. He’s thrilled by the progress Green Bridge has made so far and is optimistic about the future.

“It does provide hope not just for me, but others on the autism spectrum to find and keep jobs,” he says. “I think I can see myself doing this for the rest of my life.”

Read about Chris’ entrepreneurial success here.

​Matt and Chris had the pleasure recently of doing an interview with one of our newest volunteers, Mary Williams. We love her enthusiasm and the commitment she brings to Green Bridge Growers. Enjoy their conversation and all the gifts Mary brings to our work!
 
Matt and Chris: Hi Mary, thanks for talking to us today about your involvement in Green Bridge Growers! It’s always great for our supporters to know more about the great volunteers who contribute their time and talents with us. Could you share your own background in farming or gardening, and how you got interested in it?

Mary: I've loved growing plants since I was a little kid. I helped my Mom with her flower gardens, and my grandfather taught me how to grow vegetables. Since then I've always had a garden, no matter where I lived. In college I studied horticulture. After graduating, I moved to Maryland and started working as a grower in a horticulture training program for people with disabilities. Some of the crops we grew in our five greenhouses were poinsettias, lilies, mums, house plants, annuals and vegetable starter plants. There was a garden center on the property where customers could buy the plants.

M & C:  How did you hear about Green Bridge Growers, and what attracted you to our work?

Mary: Well, when I moved to South Bend I started hearing about Green Bridge Growers from a lot of different people interested - and I was! I was interested in volunteer opportunities so I thought it would be a very good fit for my background.  I love the idea of growing sustainable food through aquaponics and I'm happy to be learning about it!

 M & C:  What interested you most to want to work with people with disabilities, either autism in particular, or disabilities in general? How might you have worked with people with disabilities before? What was the work like, and what did you enjoy about the work?

Mary:  I was close to people with disabilities as a child, and I think that was a factor that drew me into this work. I had two neighborhood friends with physical disabilities. I was in school with them for twelve years. They were fun, adventurous, and I saw how they bravely dealt with challenges. Also, my cousin has Down syndrome and she's a great, kind person and I always enjoy seeing her. When I was in college, I enjoyed working on a vegetable gardening project with people with developmental and intellectual disabilities. I learned quite a bit from one of the participants who had grown up on a farm.

Finally, I worked for several years at a horticulture training program for people with disabilities and I was fortunate to get to know those participants very well. The work day was 6, 7 hours long and everyone had to work together to get the crops grown and sold. Sometimes the work was hard, and the greenhouses would get very hot in the summer. We would get poinsettia cuttings in the late summer that our participants would pot up. Every December I loved seeing the greenhouses full of spectacular blooms and how proud everyone was to have grown them. Right after that we would start getting ready for our busy spring season, sowing flats of seed and potting up cuttings.  May was incredibly busy. We had five greenhouses bursting with flats, pots and baskets of annuals and vegetable plants that needed to be sold within a few short weeks, and somehow it would always get done.  It was wonderful to work with such an amazing group of people!
M & C: What things have you enjoyed most about volunteering with Green Bridge Growers so far?

Mary: I've enjoyed the enthusiasm of the participants. I like how in the space of an hour and a half, we can pick a crop, cook up a great dish, and share it with everyone at Hannah and Friends. It's very satisfying to see people ask for seconds! I love working with everyone I've met at Green Bridge Growers. It's a great concept, and I look forward to watching it grow.

M & C: What's your favorite crop to grow and eat? Do you have any special recipes do you enjoy that use this vegetable?

Mary: I'd have to say tomatoes for sure, you can't beat a fresh picked home-grown tomato. I enjoy eating them fresh - I just love drizzling them with olive oil and a little fresh basil. I also like making stuffed tomatoes and pasta sauce. If I have a bumper crop of cherry tomatoes, I roast, freeze, and enjoy them all winter long!
 
Here’s one of the recipes I love the most with cherry tomatoes. I look forward to making it with everyone this summer and I hope Green Bridge Growers supporters everywhere will enjoy it: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/212896/caprese-appetizer/
 
M&C: Thanks for talking to us today, Mary! And thanks for everything you do to help Green Bridge Growers! 

At Green Bridge Growers, as we go in to 2017 we are excited to build on our work from the past year. There are a number of things to be especially proud of at our different locations around the community.
 
Our Hannah and Friends greenhouse continues to be a place for us to seed our vegetables and nurture them to a point where they can be transplanted to our grow beds and outdoor growing area.  We experimented with a number of new varieties of greens and herbs to better understand ideal temperatures and growing conditions, their rate of growth and what factors influence the size of our seedlings - and which of our seedlings eventually tasted the best and were everyone’s favorite for our farm to table recipes! This work is great because it is very hands-on and all of us involved are learning a lot about greenhouse farming.
 
In our work at Hannah and Friends, we are proud to have begun a project that we’ll complete next year. We are transforming the raised beds in the outdoor gardens to accessible beds so all of the Hannah and Friends participants with different abilities can take part in planting and harvesting. This terrific project is spearheaded by Melissa Tomas, an amazing volunteer of ours. We were also very happy to grow bumper crop of potatoes and tomatoes. Two of our favorite, tastiest vegetables!
 
Other highlights included our very successful Downtown Skywalk Garden in South Bend, which is a wonderful and fragrant place to visit. Especially when it’s winter outside! Herbs and a lot of greens and even flowers are doing great there. We enjoy helping South Bend be a more sustainable city. And what we grow there makes the most wonderful teas – my favorite is lemon balm tea. It’s an herb that makes a very soothing, fresh tea! In 2016, we also took aquaponics into the classroom through our Aquaponics Across the Curriculum program which ran at Edison Intermediate Center in South Bend last year. We partnered with the sustainability program at Notre Dame and the science education and communicative science programs at Saint Mary’s College. Lots of learning about STEM that was very hands-on!
 
At our expansion site, we are nearly finished building our first two greenhouse structures. We are very happy that so many groups this fall came out to the farm to lend their help and expertise. Programs like the Knights of Columbus, GreeND, Professor Susan Latham’s students from Saint Mary’s College, and various grad and alum programs at the Mendoza School at ND were terrific volunteers. We’re thrilled to have had their help!
 
 Growing lots of fresh, local food for the community is what I’m looking forward to the most in 2017. All of us are excited that people with autism will get training and jobs. That brings a lot of hope! On the farm this year, I know I’m really going to enjoy the chance to produce food sustainably. That’s really important for our community and we are happy to contribute that way.
 
--Chris Tidmarsh

As we enter the last weeks of 2016, Green Bridge Growers gives thanks for a year of growth, progress, and numerous partnerships that support and enrich our work. The spirit of thanksgiving which we just celebrated here in the U.S. is truly a time for reflection and gratitude. For us at GBG, our hearts are full of appreciation for the many people who have made a difference by sharing their time and talent with us this year.  There are so many to thank! Among our many champions, we would especially like to express gratefulness to:

1. Our Volunteers:  We have the most amazing volunteers who offer their time and expertise generously to our programming. Melissa Money-Tomas has been with us for two years and her background in horticulture and community gardening contributes tremendously to our mission. Her smile, upbeat personality, and creativity are appreciated by everyone! This year Melissa spearheaded the conversion of the existing raised beds at the Hannah and Friends gardens to accessible raised beds which individuals of all abilities can enjoy. Christine Wyllie moved to South Bend this year from Virginia, where she studied special education and history and volunteered at Innisfree, an inclusive farm for individuals with disabilities. Her work with day program participants has been extremely well-received. Mary Williams joined us this fall and has both an academic background in agriculture and prior experience gardening with individuals with special needs. What tremendous impact our team of volunteers has had – they’ve done a terrific job training and teaching others, and making the farm to table connection an enjoyable one for the Hannah and Friends participants. 

2. Our Community Partners: What a blessing it is to work alongside individuals from the community who partner with us to advance our work and are committed to our mission of growing good food and good jobs. Notre Dame’s GreeND and Knights of Columbus student chapter are two partners that have volunteered with us steadily, and we love the work they do on behalf of sustainability and creating more opportunities for autistic adults. Likewise, the MBA Program at Notre Dame's Mendoza School has brought their incoming students to our expansion site as part of their new student orientation to learn about the local community, social enterprise, and to share their gifts with us in a spirit of solidarity and service.   The Saint Mary’s College Communicative Science Department has shown their versatility as volunteers - going into the classroom to share our inclusive aquaponics curriculum with middle school students, and working at our expansion site to see our new commercial greenhouses take shape.  And with a spirit of service and dedication to the community that can’t be beat, the Penn High School Hockey Team has volunteered onsite at our new farm to do tasks requiring a large number of people – and has helped move us along beautifully. For these partnerships and the partnerships we hope to continue to develop, we are extremely grateful.

3. Our Funders and Foundation Supporters: This year we are very grateful for the opportunity to participate in Autism Speaks’ efforts to develop entrepreneurial businesses for individuals with autism – including their Pitchfest at Northwestern University and as a participant in their Midwest Small Business Accelerator.  And locally, the outstanding support of the Community Foundation of St. Joseph County has advanced our work in a very meaningful way – the Foundation’s commitment to impact and innovation has been quite an inspiration for us. Also important is the support of the Heart of Cook Foundation with their special interest in sustainability and “green” initiatives, and for the commitment of the Notre Dame Knights of Columbus to assist in our expansion plans benefiting individuals with autism. 
​
All of us at Green Bridge Growers are full of gratitude for those in the community who offer so much and have made such a difference to our work. We would love to involve others in the community as volunteers and supporters – please be in touch to share in our impact and offer your own time and talent!

​What's up with your ladybug release at the Hannah and Friends greenhouse?
From time to time, farmers have to contend with unwanted pests consuming their crop -  like aphids. A few weeks ago we noticed early-stage aphids in our mint. Although there are other organic methods for controlling aphids, ladybugs are a natural predator of aphids and we decided to pursue this remedy. The ladybugs are handling the problem well - the number of aphids has dwindled since introducing the ladybugs into our aquaponics system. We’d much rather see ladybugs munching on our mint sprigs than anything else!
 
What are the benefits of using ladybugs?
They’re a great way to control pests like aphids without having to use chemical spray on your plants.  Any natural means of controlling insects is important for organic farmers. A fun fact about ladybugs (and an important benefit!) is that during a single ladybug’s lifetime they can consume up to 5000 aphids. Now that’s an appetite we farmers like!
 
How exactly do you release ladybugs so they remain in a greenhouse?
When we released our ladybugs, we kept the roll-up sides to the greenhouse nearly closed and the door shut to keep the ladybugs inside. We were also advised to release the ladybugs early in the morning on a cooler, more overcast day. Ladybugs like a bit of moisture in the air, so we also sprayed the air above where they were released to create conditions they enjoyed in the greenhouse. It also helps to release the ladybugs in stages, so the first release might be a week before the second. That provides a steady supply of ladybugs ready to do battle with the aphids.

What other beneficial insects do farmers growing sustainably use?
Farmers sometimes also use parasitic wasps to try to control certain pests.  They also try to plant certain crops that will attract bees.  Bees don’t kill pests, but they help pollinate crops, which is necessary for some of them to develop fruit so raising crops attractive to bees is very important.
 
What’s “integrated pest management?” Why is it important?
Integrated pest management is important because it’s a natural means of controlling pests -  rather than pesticides that can harm the environment.  It’s also more effective at keeping pests under control in the long run, because it tries to create conditions that are unfavorable for pests to grow.  In order to use this integrated way of managing pests, however, you need to monitor your crops and be able to correctly identify pests. One of the things we’ve learned and been trained to do through our work at the Hannah and Friends greenhouse is to carefully observe our crops and notice the presence of existing pests right away. When we scale up to production at our expansion site, this kind of observation and management will be even more important.
 
What other “organic” methods control a problem like aphids?
Farmers and gardeners can also use insecticidal soap or oil sprays, or even spray the aphids with a regular hose.  Some other species of pests can also be treated by using bacteria that only infect that species.  For example, some organic farmers use a bacterium called Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), which targets certain pests like beetles, caterpillars, and moths. At other times in the past, we’ve controlled pests like aphids by applying a diluted soapy solution to our plants and that works very well too.
 
We love our ladybugs and we hope you’ll think of using them too. They do the job in indoor greenhouses and outdoor gardens – a very beneficial insect! ​

- Chris Tidmarsh

This summer, much of our time tending our outdoor gardens was spent planting and caring for our beautiful Russet potato crop. Matt, Adam, Chris, Kiley, and Donna did it all. They dug, trenched, planted, and dealt with the inevitable potato beetle pests organically, using painstaking methods. But in the end, there was a wonderful harvest of picture-perfect potatoes they can all be proud of!  Our stellar volunteer, Melissa Tomas, guided the entire  process and cooked up a great idea the other day at the Hannah and Friends kitchen. The result? Delicious, healthy baked "French Fried" potatoes!  Here's the wonderful recipe they used - we think you'll love it too! Our only caution? That these potatoes are so wonderful, there'll be no leftovers.

Best Baked French Fries
 Ingredients:

• cooking spray
• 6 Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into thick fries
• 1 tablespoon white sugar
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

 

• 1 teaspoon garlic powder, or more to taste
• 1 teaspoon salt, or more to taste
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper, or more to taste

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil; spray with cooking spray.
2. Place sliced potatoes in a colander; sprinkle sugar over potatoes. Set aside until liquid is released from potatoes, 20 to 30 minutes. Drain liquid and dry potatoes well.
3. Mix potato slices, olive oil, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper in a resealable bag until evenly coated. Spread coated potato slices in a single layer, leaving space around each potato, on the prepared baking sheet.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes; flip fries and continue baking until crisp and browned, about 20 more minutes. Baking time may vary depending on how thick you cut the fries. 

Recipe credit: AllRecipes.com

It’s that time of year. A time when seasons are about to change. And yet, our gardens and greenhouse are still producing and fruitful. But change is in the air. Temperatures are dipping a bit, though we still have plenty of 80 degree days. Cooler days will be here soon.
 
At the large outdoor garden we tend at Hannah and Friends, we’ve been harvesting our vegetables for weeks. Thanks to the wonderful Tomas Family and their team of volunteers, we’ve been rebuilding our raised beds to make them more accessible. We are scaling them up from an original height of six inches to three feet. At that height, these new raised beds can be accessed by people of all abilities and require almost no bending. That’s a big help for everyone! The raised beds now contain herbs, strawberries, cucumbers, and kale. While the other vegetables are reaching the end of their season, our kale is abundant and still going strong. As a new raised bed is built around the kale, offering protection during winter, we’re hopeful that our kale crop will keep going strong until spring. We enjoy kale not just for the great recipes, but because it’s a reliable and hardy vegetable the year-round for us.

If you asked each of those involved with the Hannah and Friends greenhouse their favorite crop to grow in aquaponics, mint would win hands down! In our system, we have several different varieties growing – spearmint, chocolate, and apple. Each has a very distinct flavor and fragrance. The combination of all three makes the greenhouse a very pleasant place to be the year round!
 
Mint is a very versatile herb. It continues to grow well for us in both the winter and summer. At the start of each spring, we do a lot of pruning to cut the mint back and give new shoots a chance to develop and grow. And grow they do!
 
We are always interested in showing off the roots of our mint plants to visitors. The plant roots itself deeply, and takes up the water purified by the fish in its extensive roots system. When you grow mint in an indoor structure during the summer, the one issue we tend to stay on top of is a condition called “powdery mildew.” It spreads when the air stands still instead of circulating. We address the problem proactively, clipping affecting shoots and using an organic spray that’s very effective that has a water-vinegar base.
 
“I really like the smell and the taste of mint,” said Chris. “It’s a great addition to our greenhouse and mint can be used in so many ways.”  Matt has a unique and very accurate way of referring to the three types of mint we grow – collectively, he calls them  “the mints” because we have three different types of mint in our grow beds.
 
Matt and Chris have become very skilled at propagating mint. Rather than raising new plants from seed, they “clone” mint by stimulating root growth with a special gel and placing a mint stem in rockwool under a plastic dome. Watered carefully, the mint begins to root itself in about two weeks and presto – you have a full-fledged mint plant ready to transplant! We have used this method to grow a number of the mint plants that are in our Downtown Skywalk Grow Beds and it’s been very productive for us.
 
Think that mint just has a pleasing flavor but nothing more? Not at all! Mint has trace amounts of iron and contains antioxidants. It’s well-known for its property to relax the stomach. The next time you use mint, you can know it’s very beneficial to your health too!
 
We have so many favorite ways to use mint. Matt loves our mint brownies. We’ve learned that the best way to use the mint in recipes like that is to run the mint through a food processor with a bit of water so the mint is an infusion. That way, the mint is distributed equally throughout the batter rather than lodging in just one place. Mint tea especially in the winter is always flavorful and relaxing. We just nest the mint in a cup and let it steep for about 4 minutes. It’s delicious and healthy!
 
We’d like to share our favorite summertime mint recipe with you. It comes from our friends at Edible Michiana Magazine, and is reported to be an Amish favorite. We call it “Meadow Tea.”
 
Meadow Tea
 
Ingredients:
 
-4 cups mint leaves, tightly packed
- 8 cups water
-Juice of one fresh lemon
-1 cup sugar
 
 
Instructions:
-Harvest mint; separate mint stems from leaves
-Pour 8 cups of water into a cooking pot. Boil water,
add mint.
-Make simple syrup: Place one cup sugar and one cup water in saucepan. Heat
until sugar dissolved, set aside to cool.
-After 30 minutes, strain with a sieve or colander to separate leaves from tea
-Chill tea 30 minutes
-Add juice of one lemon, “simple syrup,” and some ice.
-You’re ready to enjoy!
 
We hope that this summer, you relax with something minty. We hope you enjoy mint’s freshness, flavor, and wonderful fragrance!

It’s time to spotlight one of the most important parts of our aquaponic system in our prototype greenhouse at Hannah and Friends - the fish. Our fish play the valuable role of providing nutrients for the plants to absorb. The waste from the fish contains a lot of nitrogen, which is in the form of ammonia. Bacteria in the water convert the ammonia first to nitrites, and finally to nitrates. Ammonia and nitrites are poisonous to the fish, so monitoring the levels of those compounds to keep them in a safe range is very important. Nitrates, on the other hand, are nontoxic to the fish and are the form of nitrogen that the plants can use most easily, so the higher the nitrate levels, the better. We test for these different forms of nitrogen regularly with a test kit. Test tubes are filled with samples of water from our system. We add drops of the test solutions into the test tubes, and the color the water is a measure of how much ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate there is in our system.

There are two kinds of fish in our system at Hannah and Friends: goldfish and koi. Many of them we have had since we first built our greenhouse almost three years ago. These hardworking fish produce a lot of nitrogen for us, and koi and goldfish both tolerate a temperature range that extends from 55 to 85 degrees. That’s been quite favorable to us maintaining a greenhouse in a colder climate. In the winter we heat our aquaponic tank to a degree that allows us to grow vegetables that do well in cooler temperatures.

We always ensure that the fish get plenty of additional oxygen, which is important to maintain their health. Our fish were small when we first got them, but ever since we put them in the tank they’ve gotten bigger. Even one of the goldfish we had kept at home in an aquaponic system there never got very big until we placed in the bigger system at Hannah and Friends. It’s amazing what being in a bigger system can do to a fish’s growth! All of our fish have names, like Hulk Hogan, Nemo, and Tank that our friends have given them.

It’s really important with an aquaponic system to not overload the system’s capacity to hold fish. A good rule of thumb is to have one inch of fish per each gallon of water in your aquaponic system.

We make sure to feed the fish every day. We give them a couple handfuls of food and when we put it in the tank, our fish gobble it up pretty quickly. We’ve enjoyed learning about our fish, the things that make them grow best, and how to keep them healthy. Fish are quite social creatures and are very aware of their environment. They even know the sound of our voices. The closed loop between fish and plants in aquaponics makes a very powerful growing system indeed!

-Chris Tidmarsh