BLOG

One of our newest REACH wellness offerings is a mindful birding group, co-led by local naturalist Dave Edson and staff member and birding enthusiast, Pauline Banducci.

An exciting new addition to our conference this year is a Lived Experience Panel, which will be moderated by Stacey Henson, LCSW, ACSW, our director of clinical outreach.

If you’ve been to our annual 5K Walk/Run at Gould Farm, you’ve probably seen Katie. She doesn’t make a big deal about what she does, but for the past several years, she’s been our top individual fundraiser. She shows up, she reaches out to people, and she asks them to give. And then she comes back and does it again the next year!

When Stacey Henson stepped into the role of director of clinical outreach a year ago, the position was evolving to work more closely with the admissions team and spend more time on the road, talking about the Farm with diverse audiences. Stacey reflects, “When I stepped into the role, I felt I could help get the word out about what we do, and as a clinician, also bring my clinical experience into multiple areas of the job.

After nearly 25 years at Gould Farm in various clinical roles, we are happy to announce that Nancy Masino Martin has accepted the position of clinical director, following a year serving as acting clinical director. Her tenure overlaps deeply with that of Jane Linsley, who led the clinical team for two decades and recently retired.

For over a century, Gould Farm has championed the idea that recovery happens through community and shared humanity. This summer, we are continuing that mission by hosting the third annual Psychosis Care and Connection: A Retreat on Humanistic Approaches from June 25-27, 2026.

Almost all of us have felt it or seen it in others: a moment when we lower our gaze and cannot look someone in the eye; it is as if a spotlight is shining on just us and we wish we could disappear. The feeling I am describing is shame – a heavy and challenging emotion to understand and navigate. Shame can also be a powerful, often overlooked, barrier to recovery.

On Sunday, May 31, 2026, we return to the loop! Our goal is to raise $60,000 for the Gould Farm Community Fund. This fund is the practical backbone of our mission; it provides the financial assistance that ensures our recovery programs remain accessible to guests regardless of their financial situation.

We spotlight a group in Ontario, Canada, is preparing to open Eli’s Place, a farm-based residential treatment program for young adults struggling with mental illness. It will be the first program of its kind in Canada. Co-founders David and Deborah Cooper were inspired to create Eli’s Place in memory of their son, Eli, whom they lost to suicide.

Prospective guests and family members often wonder if life at Gould Farm slows down in winter. Is there anything to do when it's so cold outside? Most people know that New England winters can be harsh and tend to picture spring, summer, or fall as our more active seasons – so it’s a fair question. We’re here to show you some of what we get up to in the colder months, staying just as active with our work program and activities as we do during the other three seasons!

The magazine “...seeks to fill the gap in the literary landscape of young people seeking to express their struggle with mental illness and trauma creatively but without the need to use traditional literary verbiage… Whether free falling through psychosis, or bedridden in a state of depression, we know what it feels like to be living life in a state of limbo. We want to hear the messy truth.”

Every Wednesday, our community gathers in a wide circle to share appreciations—words of gratitude for a helping hand, a good meal, or care for the Farm. These moments are especially meaningful when a guest prepares to take their next step, whether to Fellside, O’Connell House, or another path. Recently, as Spencer prepared to move to Fellside, they shared an appreciation with the Farm community—and have graciously allowed us to share it with you, our extended Gould Farm famil

McKee House, one of the three guest residence at Gould Farm, was recently renovated to create a more modern, bright living space for guests.

We’re thrilled to share that the Gould Farm farm team has been awarded a Food Security Infrastructure Grant (FSIG) through the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR) — a publicly funded investment of $108,765 that will allow us to renovate and modernize our creamery.

Gould Farm has received a generous grant from the Sidney R. Baer, Jr. Foundation to expand wellness programming, enhancing nutrition, fitness, and holistic care for adults with serious mental illness.

A community meal in the common dining room at Fellside in Medford, MA, to which current guests living in the program as well as local...

In loving memory of Robert "Bob" Rausch, who dedicated over 45 years of his life to Gould Farm.

We’re thrilled to welcome Maggie and Ray as this year’s Commonwealth Corps service members at Gould Farm! Both bring rich experience and a passion for community, wellness, and meaningful connection. Over the next year, they’ll be living and serving alongside our community—supporting wellness initiatives, contributing to our food philosophy, and carrying forward important projects that weave together work, care, and daily life at the Farm.

It feels like just yesterday that we were letting the dairy herd out onto the spring grass for the first time in the year... The cows bounded out after the long winter in the barn, kicking up their heels and sinking nose-first into the tall, green grass. That moment always feels like the return of warmth here at Gould Farm—a season of abundance, growth, and full, long days.

At the 2025 Psychosis Care & Connection Retreat, Gould Farm clinician Brett Thatcher, LICSW, MTS, presented his paper A Generative Unease: Thinking Psychosis with Queer Theories. Brett invited participants to consider psychosis not only as a challenge to be managed but also as a potential source of meaning, creativity, and self-making. His scholarship, rooted in compassion and community, reflects Gould Farm’s mission to honor each person’s unique path of healing. Read how his