Healthy diet led couple to grow their own food
by Adelia Ladson | photography by Jill Stringfellow Photography
So why did Kim and Archie Hendricks uproot their entire life in Philadelphia to set roots down in Colquitt County?
The first thing Kim told me, when I asked her the question, was the whole reason they started the farm was for their health.
Archie said he had really gotten into health because he had a mentor who gave him books to read that enlightened him on some things.
“ I was on this path of trying different diets and trying to figure out how to be the healthiest and he gave me a bunch of books … and one of them was about“ fruitarianism.” Just eating a lot of fruit and just healing yourself naturally. You know, no pharmaceuticals and alkalies in your body,” he said.
He said that when he started reading the books, it made more sense than anything else he had read or experienced. He ended-up going down to Florida and getting certified as a detoxification specialist and an iridologist, which is someone who heals a person naturally through diet, exercise and lifestyle choices.
Of course, the next step, he said, was that they wanted to grow their own food.
“ It was health that influenced us to start growing our own food because what you’ re eating really does matter,” Kim said.“ We think it’ s really important to eat food from the earth, especially when it’ s grown within the same area that you’ re in.”
Archie said they drink a lot of juice, eat a lot of fruit and don’ t focus on any specific nutrient.
“ We just eat healthy. We try to eat things that are grown locally, naturally and organically,” he said, and added that they weren’ t strictly fruitarian but they do eat a“ plant-based” diet.
He also said that they weren’ t judgmental about how other people ate and definitely didn’ t tell their friends what they should eat.
“ We don’ t feel like that’ s what we’ re here for,” said Kim.
She said, when it came to the farm and what their goals were, they wanted to provide food for themselves but they also wanted to be able to provide for the community.
“ And give people the option to know their farmers, to know where their food comes from and to have access to it,” Kim also said.
Archie said, that aside from selling fruit to people, they were also willing to show people what they do on their farm and how they do it. He said it wasn’ t hard to learn but many people don’ t want to take the time to read books and do the research.
“ And that’ s what we’ ve been doing for years, now,” he said.“ I was reading books about soil health before we lived here.”
Once their trees start bearing fruit, some of their future goals are to have a roadside stand and have variety boxes of fruit along with a pick-up and delivery system. They also want to possibly have a nursery where people can buy different varieties of fruit trees.
Kim said she didn’ t really eat a lot of fruit when she was growing up and so, it was amazing to her when she started learning about the different varieties of fruit.
“ There’ s not just one variety of apple,” she said.“ There are so many varieties, so many colors, so many flavors of the same fruit.”
She added, that for her, it was like she was discovering a whole new world and a whole new cuisine.
JUNE 2025 MoultrieScene 19