Meet Morristown’s Famous Farmer: Shaun Ananko

By Mitchell Baker

A white pickup truck pulls into the parking lot outside the College of Saint Elizabeth’s greenhouse on a chilly winter’s day.

The bearded driver flashes a familiar smile from beneath his beanie hat as he greets the workers.  It’s Farmer Shaun!

Shaun Ananko is starting his seventh year as director of agriculture and education for Grow It Green Morristown, a nonprofit that provides fresh, locally grown food for Greater Morristown.

From two Morristown venues– the Early Street Community Garden, and the Urban Farm at Lafayette on Hazel Street–the organization pursues its mission of creating green space and educating residents about where their food comes from.

Ananko manages the Urban Farm, behind the Lafayette Learning Center, and runs its farm stand from June through October.

He also manages the greenhouse at the College of Saint Elizabeth in Morris Township, to grow plants to transfer to the farm in April.

“My job is to grow vegetables and teach the community where they get their food from,” he says.

Additionally, Ananko works with the Morris School District to offer gardening and farming field trips for students.

 “Every kid plants something and tries a new veggie,” he says. Teachers from the district can arrange free class visits to the Urban Farm.

“For most, it is their first visit to a farm, their first harvest of a vegetable from the ground, and their first time watching chickens,” says Karen Andre, principal of the Lafayette Learning Center.

“We are fortunate, indeed, to have [Ananko] in our backyard.”

Ananko wasn’t always a farmer. For a time, he sold supplements for Smartbomb.com, which sparked his interest in nutrition.

In 2008, someone gave him a beehive. He kept it at a small organic farm, where the farmer gave him agricultural tips. Now the hive and its bees reside at the Early Street Community Garden, their home since 2010.

That same year he applied to Grow It Green for the job at the Urban Farm.

There, he combined agriculture with community service. The Urban Farm grows food for the Interfaith Food Pantry and Morristown High School. Remaining produce is sold at cost via the farm stand.

The farm expanded thanks to financial donations by Kings Food Markets and Hampshire Real Estate Companies in 2012.

Scores of students and volunteers have come to know Ananko over the years.

“He is a man who loves what he does,” says Hayley Speckhart, a volunteer from Drew University. “It seems that his abilities to make a difference to the people in the community comes naturally to him.”

Abby Gallo, executive director of Grow It Green, likes to joke that Ananko is a celebrity on par with Madonna:

“No last name — just Farmer Shaun,” she says.

Mitchell Baker is a senior at Drew University, where he is majoring in English.