Commissioner Lorraine Cochran-Johnson Sponsors Fall Festival and Ribbon Cutting at E.M.B.A.R.C. Youth Farm

This exciting event promises a day filled with fun activities for all ages.

Commissioner Lorraine Cochran-Johnson will sponsor a ribbon cutting and Fall Festival event at the E.M.B.A.R.C. Youth Farm on Oct. 28, 2023, from noon to 4 p.m. at 1185 Rock Chapel Rd, Lithonia, Ga.

The Fall Festival is the official kickoff of the highly anticipated E.M.B.A.R.C. Youth Farm and is an occasion for families, friends and neighbors to celebrate the fall season. The event begins with a ribbon cutting at noon. Guests are asked to park at the Bruce Street Senior Center located at 2484 Bruce Street, Lithonia, Ga. A shuttle will transport attendees to the event.

E.M.B.A.R.C. Youth Farm's grand opening comes after almost three years to create a world-class space that includes youth development, life skills, agriculture, and recreation. The Youth Farm, launched in 2019 as the brainchild of Commissioner Lorraine Cochran-Johnson, and aims to promote healthy living, encourage engagement with nature, and proudly boasts South DeKalb’s first park naturalist. The Youth Farm is slated to be a $10 million project. With Phase I almost complete, Phases II and III include tennis courts, kayaking, a hen house, and a state-of-the-art country store where participants will produce a variety of products, including jellies, jams, pickled okra, and compost.

Fall Festival Attendees will have the opportunity to explore various attractions and engage in a wide range of activities. The event will feature a campsite station, guided greenhouse and garden tours, a costume contest, beekeeping demos, fall crafts, an apple press, popcorn, a s’mores station, animal petting, and face painting.

“We are transforming the E.M.B.A.R.C. Youth Farm into a 58-acre oasis that will be a game-changer for DeKalb County. I hope to make it a national model that can be replicated across the United States in urban environments,” said Commissioner Cochran-Johnson.

To learn more about E.M.B.A.R.C. Youth Farm, visit the website here or newsletter here.

For media coverage or to schedule an interview with Commissioner Cochran-Johnson or Park Naturalist Jennifer McLaurin email jlmanigo@dekalbcountyga.gov or call 470-547-2696.