At Blawesome, we grow over 75 varieties of organic flowers, perennials, and herbs, creating custom designs that blend the free spirit of native wildflowers with the elegance of cultivated botanicals. What truly sets us apart is the sense of community our flowers inspire.
In the fall of 2015, just ten days before the first day of school, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction shut down a local Charter High School that served at-risk students, and students with disabilities. The decision left hundreds of vulnerable high schoolers with no plan and no place to go. One of those students was my son, Raimee Sorensen.
In the wake of this unexpected and life-altering event, my husband and I decided that Raimee’s next transition should be one that put him on the path towards a life lived as fully and independently as possible. Drawing from past experiences that both inspired joy and showcased Raimee’s skill-sets, we decided to help Raimee start a farm. And not just any farm, but a small, sustainably operated flower farm that would use the beauty of fresh flowers to lift up the community, while simultaneously challenging harmful stereotypes about what it means to live and work with a disability. It was out of this desire that Blawesome Farm was born.
This decision led to a unique partnership with the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation and the development of Blawesome Farm, a for-profit microenterprise which Raimee co-owns and where he currently works with support to grow and cultivate the natural beauty of seasonal flowers.
At Blawesome, we pay attention to the daily miracles that are gifted to us by Mother Nature, and we celebrate the power that that beauty has to promote positive visibility for some of our most disenfranchised and marginalized community members.
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines social determinants of health as the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work, and age, shaping health outcomes and inequalities. For individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD), access to quality social and economic opportunities is limited. The WHO highlights employment conditions and social exclusion as key factors influencing health and quality of life.
Farming offers an innovative solution, providing purposeful work, autonomy in a non-clinical environment, and meaningful connections with the earth, the community, and the human spirit. Blawesome Farm is working to alter societal perspectives about the potential and capability of individuals with disabilities to contribute in valuable ways to the local economy.
