At Ease Orchard has been selected by the Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs (IDVA) to serve as the agency’s Non-Profit Partner (NPP) in 2025. The program partners IDVA with an Indiana non-profit dedicated to enhancing the lives of Indiana’s Veterans.
At Ease Orchard, which is based near Wilkinson, Indiana in Hancock County, was founded by Joe Ricker and is dedicated to empowering veterans and their families through sustainable agriculture and beekeeping.
Ricker is a retired Army colonel who served his country for 30 years before retiring from a logistics post at the Pentagon in 2022. He moved to central Indiana to set up At Ease Orchard as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit to help support veterans.
“I served about a year in Iraq and I did about a year in Afghanistan,” according to Ricker. “A lot of the people I served with always mentioned beekeeping, so I picked up that passion. I also decided that an orchard just blend so nicely with the bees as a pollinator, so it kind of just took off.”
He says beekeeping and working on a farm can be therapeutic for many veterans—not only for those who suffer from post-traumatic stress syndrome, but also those veterans who may return home with a physical disability.
“I think it helps veterans. It gives them a mission and gives them a reason to wake up because beekeeping and farming, in general, is a little bit like the military—there’s always danger in it.”
He says he also understands the struggles that many veterans face and uses to farm to help connect with them.
“We’ve been in different environments that most people who aren’t veterans sometimes don’t understand. But it’s a difficult environment to try to adjust to when you return home from serving. With that said, being among other veterans helps you open up a little more. You can say, ‘Hey do you remember this?’ You kind of have that camaraderie where people understand what you’re going through,” says Ricker.
He also founded Veterans IN Farming, which provides veterans in Indiana with training and support to succeed in farming. He’s involved with Heroes to Hives through Michigan Food & Farming Systems, which uses beekeeping to help veterans achieve financial and personal wellness. For the last several years, he has served as veteran outreach coordinator for the National AgrAbility Project, which helps farmers, ranchers and agricultural workers with disabilities remain in the workforce.
Together, IDVA and At Ease Orchard will plan the annual IDVA golf outing as well as other community events throughout the year to raise funds for At Ease Orchard’s mission; raise awareness of state and federal benefits available to veterans; and foster community, camaraderie, and connection.
“IDVA is proud to partner with At Ease Orchard, whose innovative approach to agriculture and veteran support creates meaningful opportunities for veterans and their families,” said Joseph DeVito, IDVA Outreach Director. “Our mission is to ensure Indiana becomes a model state for veterans by providing the resources and community connections they need to succeed in every aspect of their lives.”
In addition to receiving fundraising support from the IDVA, Ricker is the first recipient of the Veteran Farmer Award of Excellence presented by the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) with support from Farm Credit. The newly established award recognizes veterans or service members for excellence in farming or agriculture and positively impacting local communities. Ricker and At Ease Orchard are being recognized and honored during the American Farm Bureau Federation’s Annual Convention in San Antonio, Texas this month.
To learn more about At Ease Orchard and how Ricker and his team how are helping veterans in need, visit AtEaseOrchard.com.
CLICK BELOW to hear Hoosier Ag Today’s interview with Retired Army Col. Joe Ricker from November 2023, as he talked with C.J. Miller about the goal of helping veterans with At Ease Orchard.
CLICK BELOW to watch a video profile of Retired Army Col. Joe Ricker and At Ease Orchard produced by American Farm Bureau Federation.
