Evidently this publication has awarded Jenna Woginrich with some honor as a homestead blogger and will do a piece on her in their next publication.
I sent From Scratch the following and suggest you do the same. Stories of her fraudulent practices continue to come in and the last thing this world needs is to honor a crook.
From Scratch,
Please reconsider Jenna woginrich from cold antler farm as an.award winner who you will highlight in a magazine. Jenna Woginrich has a long history of defrauding individuals of their money through her CSA programs, her Cold Antler Clan subscription, and her Webinar subscriptions. She takes money and does not follow through with products. Many have contacted the Attorney General and pursuing justice and compensation in small claims court. As a farmer I would also like to comment on her poor animal husbandry practices leading to ethic consequences for the animals on her farm. The mortality rate on her farm due to accidents and untreated illnesses are quite high and there are also.incidences of not providing urgent humane urbanization when necessary.
Here is a blog dedicated to the individuals Jenna has defrauded and their quest for justice.
http://coldantlersham.blogspot.com/2014/08/the-sham-that-is-cold-antler.html?m=1
The integrity and credibility of your publication is at risk by supporting Jenna Woginrich and Cold Antler Farm.
Thank you,
Meredith
I just continue to be amazed at just how unprepared she is on a regular basis--the frozen pipes, lack of dry, seasoned wood, and no hay from the most recent vlog is mystifying. I just don't get it. If we're in for severe cold or winter weather (only an occasional occurrence here in the South, mind you), any competent farmer and/or homesteader plans ahead and stocks up on fuel and feed. She lives in an area of the country where this is a routine thing! How can she STILL not be prepared for all of these issues by now?! These are rookie mistakes. After all these years she should be able to keep herself and her animals warm and fed during the winter even in her sleep, not making breathless vlogs about how her long-suffering friends have bailed her out yet again.
ReplyDeleteShe gets paid for a acting unprepared. People wouldn't send her money if she was responsible. She let's things happen because it is profitable. Prevention is work...the consequences earn her money and people Will physically and financially bail her out. Its a self serving cycle.
DeleteHow does she keep fooling reputable publications?
ReplyDeletePeople no longer care about honesty or value the truth. They rub shoulders with lies all day.
DeleteThat is seriously one of the most pathetic vlogs she has done to date.
ReplyDeleteIt takes a village to raise a Jenna? ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!
She's 32 years old and still hasn't gotten her shit together.
What if the electricity had gone out and she couldn't Facebook her pleas? And how disrespectful of her to send up the panic flag and drag people out in a wicked storm to save her ass from her own stupidity.
If you know a storm is coming wouldn't you already have a heat source stationed near your pipes instead of using some halfassed rigged blow dryer? Wouldn't you lay in enough feed and well seasoned wood while the weather is clear? Wouldn't you try to be the least bit self-sufficient so you don;t have to mooch off other people. Of course she's thankful for the people in her life. Without them she'd be doomed to abject failure on a daily basis.
Sad to think this is what passes for award winning blogging.
Jenn
Hard to even watch those blogs without getting upset. No hay? No wood? Ah, like duh. It's winter? And she's a top homesteader? Joel would be ashamed. I am.
ReplyDeleteIf what she said is true, and the readers voted on the award, they may not feel able to change it.
ReplyDeleteI was forced to watch the vlog to see what you were all talking about. How can you "miscount" bales of hay when you have 0? Well, I'm glad she's grateful for the help she was given. When will she grow up and realize her lifestyle is not sustainable?
0...didn't see that coming! Doesn't she feed everyday? Is it possible Jenna is both dumb and blind?
DeleteIt's their magazine they can do what they want. I'm sure a financial.magazine wouldn't highlight someone in bankruptcy...or maybe they would.
ReplyDeleteResearch everything people.
How do I contact "From Scratch"? I couldn't find an email or street address on their website. I am definitely writing.
ReplyDeleteThese crises are like a broken record. Every winter she is unprepared and every winter she needs people to come to her rescue. When are her enablers going to understand that until they stop bailing her out, she will continue to take advantage of them?
How can she run out of wood when she has all those freakin' trees on her property? Why isn't she chopping and splitting wood every spring to prepare for winter? She says she's a prepper? If she's such a prepper, why is she never prepared?
ReplyDeletePure laziness. She's unwilling (and unable, due to frivolous purchases and poor financial management) to invest in the proper equipment and training to manage her woodlot for firewood.
DeleteIt's time for the villagers to kick her out of the nest.
ReplyDeleteIf you read the entry on her on the new From Scratch mag, not only will you see that they don't read her blog much (it was the info from her side bar about Civil War stuff and mountain music, which, she pretty much doesn't talk much about) and her latest book... Made from Scratch. WHich was the first one, right? They just grabbed a bunch of the top bloggers with the most attention, really. Some are great, but her "infoarticle" is pretty much lame and out of date and out of touch. Disappointing.
ReplyDeleteThe sad thing is she won't learn anything as long as the "village" keeps bailing her out. She's not having to pay any real price for her inadequate stores or inability to sustain herself. She simply has to post that she's scared or needs help and her enablers rush to her aid. If she actually had to go without food, or heat, or anything else for an extended period she might become serious about self-reliance/sustainability. She never has to pay this price, though. Her poor animals do, sometimes with their lives. It's galling.
ReplyDeleteTime for the village to dish out some 'tough love'.
DeleteYes - I don't understand her frequent statements that she is afraid. Farming seems to be a fairly tough life, and only tough people should take it up.
DeleteI'm pretty sure that this post of Jon Katz was written as a direct response to Jenna's "It Takes a Village" vlog:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bedlamfarm.com/2015/02/02/with-help-how-much-can-i-do-ghosts-of-enablers/
I just read Jon's post. Yup, he was referring to Jenna. Here's a few good lines:
ReplyDelete"I do not care to live a life on a farm or elsewhere that is dependent on other people rushing to my rescue, helping with things I should have foreseen myself, or should have done by myself"
"Asking for help is one thing, manipulating people into giving it is another"
"If I can't help take care of this farm, if I can't provide what it needs, I ought not to be here."
"taking free things from people over and over again is not independence, it is dependence of the worst and most crippling kind"
"The real help comes in living your own life, being responsible for it"
He really nailed it with that post.
DeleteUgh. SUCH dependence! Ironic, isn't it, how she views an in-town type of job as some kind of twisted dependence on society? And here it would provide her with the freedom she claims to have but clearly doesn't. It's funny timing announcing this award because I was thinking how especially stale her blog content is lately. She writes the same defenses of her lifestyle and how she lives it, along with some crap about loving old stuff and how important heat from the wood stove is. All of it is frustrating to me, but what's especially frustrating is the tone I perceive (and maybe it's real - not just my perception) of her insulting "regular" people. Regular people might have farm dreams too, but could be taking a little longer to live the dream so they can do so responsibly. I know that's why I'm a slave to the desk job right now. I don't know...now more than ever her blog just screams insecurity to me. It reads like she's too afraid to genuinely own who she is so she has all this hokey shit she clings to as a mask for it. Like she's making up a character. Yeah, great, I love some old stuff too. But when I was too broke for a smartphone, that's what I was. I didn't have to make a big production out of why I didn't have certain things as some kind of distraction from the truth. I don't know. I guess all that is to say it's frustrating to see someone who is both irresponsible and insulting be rewarded for it. ~AM
DeleteI usually don't like to pile on, but you so precisely articulated my feelings right now, I feel like I have to say hear hear! -MJ
DeleteI don't usually watch those vlogs, but started this last one out of curiosity. Absolutely unbelievable how unprepared she is. What 'farmer' lets herself run out of hay, feed, & dry firewood EVER, let alone in the middle of a northern winter? She laments that she can't go sleigh riding after the free gift of dry wood and an egg breakfast, because she has to go find feed/hay for her animals?? Shouldn't the animals' needs precede her own, every day?
ReplyDeleteMaybe if she'd spent a bit more time preparing in the summer/fall, she'd have time to play in the winter...but wait, no, that's all she ever does. Play. And beg. And whine.
And I'm still flabbergasted: she crows that her pigs got one bale of hay to bed down in for the storm. That's their "shelter." What kind of shelter did they have prior to the storm? Anything at all??
That was the first vlog I watched (and could not finish) since the first one she made (also couldn't watch to the end). Now I remember why I can't stomach those things.
I, too, am concerned about those pigs. They clearly don't have adequate shelter and it seems quite possible that they could become ill or freeze to death. I wonder if she's really monitoring their health. Are they getting enough food? Their lives seem just horrible. Could stress due to inadequate shelter worsen the quality of the meat?
ReplyDeleteI don't think she cares if they live or die. She's already pre-sold the pork, even though she has pork CSA shares from the past that have still not been fulfilled. If the pigs don't thrive, or even survive, then it's less work for her, less expense paid out to have the pigs processed. And she then gets to keep ALL the money, while simultaneously creating another sob story to write about!
DeleteYou said it- she has probably not even checked on them, hoping they have died.
DeleteNew vlog. She mentions that she was "a couple mortgage payments behind" until Sunday. Today a creepy guy from the bank drove by and took pictures. I predict more drama.
ReplyDeleteOh, yes, she has her enablers well-trained, on edge for the merest hint of trouble. Her manipulation skills are frightening to behold. With this new twist she can count on the donations to "SAVE THE FARM!" Until the current batch of fans get disenchanted (and end up here?), when she'll start all over with new ones...
DeleteWatch her video right after she shares that story- look at her face- it's a sneer, knowing fulll well her fool followers will step up to bail her out again. She is evil.
DeleteI wonder how long the bank is going to play this game with her? They must be pretty tired of trying to pry payments out of her.
DeleteI do not understand why she is so far behind in payments after getting over 15 grand from her kickstarter. DO you mean to tell me that she has a big stash of money set aside carefully for her book to be published for those contributors and will possible loose her house because she won't touch it? Which sounds very unlike her... The Ponzi Queen of Homesteading... or, has she blown through all of it already?????? Unbelievable.
ReplyDeleteJenna's mid-winter crisis is right on schedule. Frozen pipes, no hay, no firewood. It's the same thing year after year.
ReplyDeleteYep, notice that the most recent vlog continues with the "raw" format she started with the previous one--no jaunty tunes or witty edits and outtakes. Shit's getting REAL on the farm! The wolves are closing in!! She's definitely laying it on thick for the annual mid-winter fundraiser.
DeleteHow can she be a couple of months behind after collecting $15,000 six months ago? Are her supporters so blind? Why aren't they calling her on this?
ReplyDeleteMy intuition tells me she is NOT two mortgage payments behind, and there was NO guy from the bank driving by the house taking pictures (perhaps it was just a lost tourist, an amateur photographer taking a country drive, or a fan). But in order to keep the funds flowing things must look dire, and spinning a good yarn is the way to make that happen. She's a lot smarter than we give her credit for...except when it comes to actual homesteading, of course.
ReplyDeleteI think you are right. I smell a lie, or she's just plain dumb, or she's so narcissistic that she thinks the whole world revolves around her. I work at a real estate firm, and I know for a FACT that the bank will not take photos or list a property until the short sale process (a precursor to foreclosure) has begun. And they would never go in secret to take a picture. The homeowner knows what is going on, and in some cases they supply the photos. You do not go into the short sale process for being 2 payments behind. Jenna bends the truth way too much. I'm not sure how she lives with herself!
DeleteI actually feel pretty bad for her. To me, as much as she constantly says she loves her life and doesn't want to date, I think she is miserable and incredibly lonely. She lives a life that is in constant crisis mode. She's looking at a long future alone (what sane person would want to be a part of that life?), and most likely without a farm of any kind. At the rate she's going-losing followers, few blog comments, no book deals on the horizon- her days living this way are numbered. I wouldn't be surprised if in 10 years or less she was in a small apartment, working a menial job (or hopefully graphic design), trying to get back on her feet. Or she will just declare bankruptcy.
I'm not sure I buy the story that he was taking pictures "to make sure it was still occupied." You wouldn't take pictures for that, right? I don't know anything about that process, but I'd think he'd try knocking on doors, etc? Either he was blowing smoke or Jenna is.
DeleteWhere did you hear that? (I'm the poster from above that works in a real estate firm, I forgot to put my name at the end of my last post).
DeleteIn my experience they do not do that. If they did that to everyone who was 2 payments behind, their job would be neverending. They look at utility bills to determine if anyone is still living there. If there are no utilities being used, their next step is to check change of address through the post office. Their last resort is to send someone to the property.
-Anna P.
On her vlog where she mentions the "scary bank guy" - she said he was driving by and stuck his smart phone out the window to take pictures. She came outside and asked if he needed anything and he told her he was from the bank, and they were checking to make sure the property was still occupied. Jenna told him she'd just made a mortgage payment last week, and the guy said something about being five days behind. In the vlog Jenna ends that story by begging people "if you've ever wanted to help out the farm before, buy workshops, click on ads, view my vlogs" etc. At least she isn't outright asking for donations.
DeleteSorry, that sounds like a lie. Bank guys don't come by a house that is 5 days behind on a mortgage.
DeleteThis seems to be another case of JW thinking that making a single month's payment means the bank will be okay with you even if you owed multiple past-due payments. In the vlog she talks about making a payment on Sunday, but then also mentions being several months behind overall. This is like when she was several months behind on truck payments, made one month's payment, and then was shocked when someone showed up to repossess the truck. She seems to think that it's okay to be several months behind, as long as you make occasional payments to show the bank good faith. It's very naive.
DeleteI work for a mortgage company. That is not how it works. There is a standard process that does not involve guys/gals with smart phones outside your home. She is lying. I assume its a ploy to get donations. Didn't she just say about a month ago, how HAPPY she was to be caught up on her house payments? Now one month later, she is several payments behind? Does she even know the difference between lies and truth? She is pathetic.
DeleteWhat if it was Bridget coming to take a photo for her scrapbook?
DeleteMortgage companies don't work with spy tactics. you know a foreclosure is coming by the year of foreclosure notices ahead of it. Not a secret photo that leads to a secret sale while you're on a hammock treating your blisters from riding a horse in a skirt. Also am I the only one that DOES recall her bragging about "helping" her friend with hay and butcher chickens. I seem to recall a whole post about that, ending in a hot tub. With magical fireflies and highland antics.
I'm so glad I've read her blog all these years. It's been a huge dose of reality for me and has helped me avoid terrible mistakes. Wouldn't you love to see a breakdown of the 15k? With tax season, I'd love to know whether or not she's paying taxes on that!
Any way to fact check this via public records?
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone want to guess when the next 'save the farm' fundraiser will be? How about the 'new truck' fundraiser?
ReplyDeleteMeredith,
ReplyDeleteYou are a topic of discussion on Jenna's facebook today. For context, one of her facebook friends confused you with the person who wrote Jenna an email about why she's no longer subscribing to her blog, so that's how you came up. Here's what they are saying:
"Amber Locke I just stumbled on her blog today... what makes her so better about you and the things that you do?? This obsession with following you just to degrade what you're doing seems to have been going on for a while now.
Jenna Woginrich Oh, amber, not talking about who you are talking about. I refuse to vista that persons blog anymore.
Jenna Woginrich that woman with the blog is very unhappy and I'm her whipping boy. that's all. If I stopped the blog today she'd have a new whipping boy in no time.
Amber Locke I see. She's a little bit of a nut case!!
Jenna Woginrich My lawyer, local police, publishers, agent, and family know all about her.
Jenna Woginrich Voldemort and the death eaters on her blog are just as touching. that whole blog makes me seem important. (news flash: I'm not important)"
News flash: fraud and animal welfare issues are important.
DeleteHer lawyer??? hahaha. As if.
DeleteShe's months behind on her mortgage but she can afford a lawyer? What a load of crap!
Delete-C
She got one thing right: "She's not important."
DeleteWow, her last post is called "The Community. The Whole Story" and is about someone who wrote her saying she wasn't a real homesteader because she takes so much help, and Jenna proceeds to justify her life by claiming she helps out a lot of people but doesn't publicize it because of "privacy." Please.
ReplyDeleteThis paragraph was particularly enlightening.
"As for winter preparedness - I have never been as prepared for winter as I am now. I have 3 cords of wood outside (damp but there!). I have several "hay banks" where hay is stored for me since I don't have storage. While there are days I need to go an pick up more, it is there and my animals have NEVER missed a single meal. Ever. I did not ask for the gift of the firewood in the last videos posted, it was gifted by friends who had no fireplace or wood stove and wanted to visit/deliver it. Why? Because we are friends who share meals, games, and stories together."
It seems like JW totally missed the point of the original criticism. The reader who wrote in likely wasn't objecting to her neediness and lack of preparation because she isn't constantly talking about how she helps other people. The reader was probably objecting to JW positioning herself as a farm/homesteading expert (by writing books, teaching classes, etc.) when by her own public accounts she can't keep her own homestead in shape and in good financial standing. I don't think any of us believe that a homesteader should never, ever call on their community for support--that's nonsense. What we have a problem with is her very public tales of woe and wolves at the door, when any self-respecting homesteader (especially someone who's trying to make a living selling that lifestyle) ought to be running a much tighter ship.
DeleteAmen, Anon 4:43
DeleteYeah, I believe she doesn't visit this blog. :-)
DeleteIt's so obvious she comes here! If she truly believed her lifestyle was independent, why does she keep feeling the need to explain it over and over? If she really didn't care about what is said about her, she wouldn't be talking about it. And the guy taking a photo of her house after two missed payments...please. That doesn't happen. And JW, wet wood is not good wood-get a stinking cover or shed for it, or secure tarp. Good grief.
DeleteI love commenters who are so self-righteous they call someone a hater because she won't be a Jennafan anymore. Wow, talk about complete misunderstanding.
ReplyDeleteRarely in a "community" does one need to constantly bed to help keep one's roof over one's head. Helping neighbors means catching loose livestock, doing chores on occasion, maybe loaning equipment every once in a while. It does NOT mean mooching off everyone you meet, needing help every.single.winter to deal with frozen pipes, lack of food and lack of firewood. Living in a community means equal give and take, not being a black hole of need.
ReplyDeleteThat first line was meant to say "constantly beg to help keep one's roof over one's head" not bed.
DeleteYour description of a farming community sounds a lot more plausible to me than hers does. I would think that most people have plenty of their own work to do without constantly rushing to save someone who keeps making mistakes. I know that I would get pretty tired of doing that, even if I didn't want to see someone freeze. She's been living a rural life for a long time, and should know how to keep wood dry.
DeleteAnon at 2:58pm - thanks for explaining the process so that we can better separate likely facts from probable fictions.
ReplyDeleteWhat's especially infuriating, given that it was an email and not a public comment, is that the sender probably wanted to keep the conversation private. But, no. It got turned into a blog post.
ReplyDeleteOr, as with so many things JW reports to her fans, the email is complete fiction. No wonder her FB friend got the email writer confused with Meredith, every subject and concern in the email is lifted from this blog.
DeleteI know the email isn't fiction because I wrote it. And she totally misrepresents the tone and content of the email in her post (no surprise there). And it took her less than 30 minutes to go from a private conversation to a blog post. I can see if she was getting multiple emails with the same theme and addressing those in a post. But a single email? That smacks of defensiveness. And the comments she's letting through are just a parade of fandom.
DeleteThank you. I'm such a skeptic when it comes to her. Glad you're here.
DeleteDid you see she is now offering lifetime passes to her workshops? I am scratching my head over that one. My guess is that she hopes to get a large infusion of cash now in hopes that whoever buys them doesn't use them for life. I mean, how many goat or dulcimer workshops does one want to attend?
ReplyDeleteHere is another example of her selling something that does not yet exist. Why would anyone buy a lifetime pass?
I was wondering about the mortgage thing myself when she said she was caught up and is now a few months behind. Which is it?
ReplyDeleteA commenter
ReplyDeletefrom Jennas post
"Maybe not now, or in the near future, but eventually it will fail (unless you win the lottery, but then you are not really a homesteader;) "
I think Jennas trick pure and simple is if she appears poor and vulnerable she is successful at homesteading. Being a responsible farmer and business woman doesn't bring funds pouring in. I really can't imagine a worse role model for what they claim experience in (prepping, sheep, shepherd, pigs, poultry, etc) it's as if she is stuck in a broken record of sucking/failing at all those thibgs...takes pride in it, and smirks as the more she neglects her responsibilities the more money rolls in.
Btw...jasper post in 3...2...1
Something along the lines if how emotionally taxing it was for her to sell him, how he is now somehow being used for all the things he was too "wild" to do at her farm, that her parting with him has made a families dream come true...
Btw.. Doesn't she have a few large outbuildings? How does she not have hay storage
Even hay on pallets and a tarp will do for both hay and wood.
You can farm smart or farm stupid and I pity those people who don't know the difference or can't connect the dots.
I bet the Jasper post would be followed by how her heart aches for Jasper shortly followed by her begging for funds to buy the perfect pasture buddy for Merlin.
DeleteGood lord, I hope Merlin is a gelding.
He is, but Gibson is still intact. I'm surprised she hasn't tried to get money by studding him out based on his breeding. I know she's talked about wanting a puppy. Maybe she's waiting for Annie to pass.
DeleteUm, I think she's already done that (tried to promote Gibson as a stud dog).
DeleteHAHA! She's so full of crap. This is from her blog post, " I am also a person who feels people should be thanked when they help me and the farm." Riiiiiiiight. That's why numerous people have said they've made donations without so much as an emailed "Thanks" from her! That's why we've seen numerous questions like, "Did you receive the ______ I sent?" Because she never so much as sends an email saying she got it.
ReplyDeleteLiar.
The comments on her "email" post are hilarious. People keep saying nobody can do it alone, everyone needs helps, etc. Sure, now and then people need help.
ReplyDeleteHowever, it is NOT normal to consistently rely on others for basic needs (hay, transportation, heat) that you KNOW you will need year round, every year.
Has she seriously not figured out how to keep wood dry by now? Has she seriously not learned to get MORE hay from her "hay bank" BEFORE storms? Come on, this is basic stuff for anyone living in the northeast.
I am continuously surprised by the "jennafans" who have not figured out her routine by now! How are there still more people, fooled every day, by this lying blogger?
She continuously lies and misrepresents everything about her life, and they keep falling for it.
I am so glad you have pointed this out. I grew up not too far from where she is now (albeit in a city, not a farm) and we were never as unprepared for winter as she seems to be year after year.
DeleteThe fact that her wood is too wet to use, given that she relies on it speaks to very poor preparation. Even my children know that the first order of business in the fall is to make sure the wood will be dry when its needed. And we don't rely on it for heat. My skepticism about her started way back when she first bought the farm. She had a problem that first winter with either flooding or a boiler going out, I can't quite remember.
What I do remember is that several people with serious experience with the issue, gave her very clear instructions in the comments on how to handle the problem and fix it temporarily.
She completely ignored their advice. That's when I knew she was a slow train wreck in progress. She doesn't actually want to learn how to do things correctly or how to fix problems or find solutions. She enjoys the adrenaline and chaos of the messes she creates. Its a weird type of narcissism that screams, Look at me!!!! I need help!!! Pay attention to me!!! She needs both medication and counseling but she will never get it. The key factor is that she gets pleasure from the chaos of her life.
Here's another fine point I want to make about what Jenna and her fans have been saying on her latest post: it isn't her LIFE that anyone here objects to, it's her LIES.
ReplyDeleteAlso, many of her fans are supporting the idea that rural people borrow from each other and rely on each other constantly. I don't know where they live, but in our community, people who do that too much are not appreciated, and eventually get cut off. Admittedly, most farmers around here make a little money, or at least break even, so they are serious about what they do, and can't go to kick starter for extra funds.
Exactly this. I live on my family's farm and we have friends and neighbors who help us out in a pinch (and sometimes drop by just to talk), and who we help out (and invite over for dinner periodically), but it's a fairly infrequent thing because...surprise, surprise...we all spend most of our time being pretty self-sufficient!
DeleteI really think that a large part of JW's problem is that in all her years living in rural areas she has never managed to grow comfortable with being alone. (Alone in the sense of simply being the only human around for reasonable stretches of time. I think she equates being alone with being lonely, which is a common error. They are two very different things.) So she pops out for ham sandwiches two days into her staycation, and prioritizes trail rides and game nights with friends over putting in the work on her own farm. Her entire life on the farm has been engineered to require constant contact with other people, right down to using her friends' barns as "hay banks" instead of making it a priority to renovate one of the existing structures on her farm to make it suitable for hay storage or to save enough money to build a new structure exactly for that purpose. (Same with the firewood storage--she got so much crap for buying little bags of dry wood at Stewart's last winter that she has never mentioned it again, but I would bet you $100 that she's still doing it.)
And at the end of the day, what she's doing does not remotely resemble self-sufficiency. Ever since I read Carol Deppe's excellent book, "The Resilient Gardener," I have believed in healthy interdependence over the idea of dogged independence. But JW isn't interdependent, she's codependent, and she seems to have found a group of friends who are willing to enable her on a day-to-day basis as well as a whole passel of supporters who enable her with donations.
Bravo, but it does take a village to raise a Jenna...
DeleteIf the only victim of Jenna's life were Jenna herself I think this whole blog have a completely different focus. But the animals who die in her care, and the number of people she is actively defrauding (by selling a product or service and then not fulfilling the contract), are cause for tremendous concern. Heck, even the "passive" defrauding - by portraying herself as some kind of homesteading expert when she is demonstrably NOT - is dangerous, if naive wanna-bes use her methods. This is why she has to constantly struggle for new followers - anyone who follows her for a while sees through the facade and moves on. True, successful homesteaders don't have to lie and finesse their way to bigger audiences - their consistent hard work and pay-offs speak for themselves. She can use all the "scrappy" euphemisms you want, but Jenna can't make a silk purse out of the sow's ear of her life (with apologies to Meredith for the pig reference ;) )
ReplyDeleteRedhorse and Anon 10:14am - Exactly.
ReplyDeleteI want to highlight there's nothing wrong with needing help. At this point in my life I am dependent on the goodness of friends to make it from point A to point B. I am the first one to admit that. It is not routine or a historical way of life for me but at the moment it is what it is. The crushing blow of my best friends death, the farm (job/house/source of pride), and family issues really caused a need to grieve and get my ducks in a row. It also allowed me to spend the time fighting for what it right. At this point all I want to be is independent again and in the situation to give what I have been given. Surprisingly, relying on help and being dependent is exhausting and stressful. I don't wish it on anyone.
ReplyDeleteReally cool job opportunity/interview on Wednesday. I'm excited about the position...both physical and challenging. No animals but that's ok. My animal focus is on Ayrshire farms abuse investigation.
This New opportunity would be with trees! I need a position (for now) where ethical consequences of mismanagement do not play as large of a role.
It is also an organization rather than commercial enterprise.
I know how you feel about having to be reliant/dependent on others. The few times in my life I've found myself in that position, even as a teenager, that horrible feeling of obligation and dependence always drove me to getting back on my own two feet faster than anything.
DeleteFor instance, when my house burned down (total loss) about 5 years ago, I had hundreds of offers of help. Other than a room in a friends' house to sleep in for a week, I couldn't bear to take any of it. I understand that people see someone with nothing, and want to help, but no. I may not have had anything, but I'm resourceful enough to be able to get what I need eventually, and a short time of discomfort doesn't bother me. I set up a group donation site at Heifer.org, and encouraged people who offered assistance to make a donation there instead. Or bring their used items to Goodwill. Heifer got about ten thousand dollars in donations. I don't know how much was given to Goodwill, but I know it was some. That made me feel infinitely better than taking others' handouts.
The very few times I've had to ask a friend or neighbor for help with something on my farm, I've felt horribly embarrassed to do so. I can't imagine living that way, day in and day out. Everyone is of a different temperament and personality, I can usually sort of manage to put myself in other people's shoes, but JW's mode of living absolutely bewilders me. I would not be able to live with myself.
Ah, rant over...Best of luck with the job interview!
Wow - what you did with Heifer and Goodwill is really cool.
DeleteI agree, what you did was really cool. I love Heifer.
DeleteGood luck on that interview Meredith. I hope you're feeling better soon, and feeling better about being on the right path again.
Here is the initial email I sent to her, since she is so determined to enjoy her enablers blowing smoke.
ReplyDelete"I figured I'd keep this private to spare us both from Internet commenting.
But I can't in good conscience continue to support your blog or efforts at "homesteading". I'm all for taking a leap of faith, but after another winter of being unprepared, I figured you'd have learned your lesson.
I'm thoroughly disappointed in how you've changed since I first started reading your blog and books. I wanted to see you succeed so badly. But now I see that you're stubborn beyond reason and leaning heavily into being irresponsible.
The blog has devolved into personal crisis after personal crisis, with your friends bailing you out again and again.
I just can't anymore, Jenna. I'm sorry. I wish you wisdom."
Did I word something incorrectly? Does it come across the way she described it in her post? I don't think so. I dunno. I'm definitely done being a jenna fan though. That's for sure.
It's hilarious that you opened the email with your wish to keep it a private conversation and she immediately turned around and used it as blog fodder. Even more hilarious is how she made a big deal in the blog post that she never publicly talks about what she does for other people without THEIR PERMISSION and yet she didn't ask YOU for permission to share your email. Hypocrite much?
DeleteIt is hilariously sad. I have a blog too. But I haven't put her on public blast there. Mostly because I don't feel like dealing with her cronies littering up my space with their idiocy.
DeleteYou were entirely correct, and in my opinion, really nice. Anyone who was willing to grow and mature as a person would see the truth in what you said, and consider it a wake up call.
DeleteYou know, I just had a thought. Jenna puts up these posts about people "hating" on her, and within minutes she has her Amen Charlies up in arms defending her against any and all perceived slights. Manipulating emotion like that is Jenna's trade (quite literally), and whipping up support probably allows her to get more donations.
DeleteThat's a very well written email and is to the point with your opinion (which you have every right to give, as she's admittedly made herself a public figure) without being cutting or rude. You share really valid points. She claims she doesn't share the whole story and it's the wrong impression, but that's her own fault. I tend to believe she is sharing the whole story and the amount of irresponsibility and unpreparedness we see is the truth. But whatever the case, you were kind enough to share it privately with her and she chose the wrong way to respond. A simple and private "I'm sorry you feel this way, but thank you for your past support" could have been sufficient enough of a reply from her. I suppose that's the difference of being reflective vs defensive...and we can all see which of those she is most. ~AM
DeleteSee, that was my intent when I wrote it. I didn't have any hostility, just disappointment. But then she turned around and did that post, and then let her enablers run rampant in their complete misunderstanding. I guess i hit a sore nerve. It is what it is, though.
DeleteSo.obnoxious this was part of her response
Delete"JennaFebruary 5, 2015 at 12:26 PM
thanks all! But don't be harsh towards the email sender, she probably had a horrible day. "
You probably had a horrible day and she describes me as unhappy referencing the author of this blog.
Scapegoating.
On Tuesday, December 30, 2014, JW posted a blog called "Grand Day." In it, she said she made a mortgage payment. Then suddenly a month later she was so far behind that a guy from the bank drove by to see if the place was occupied??? She is lying.
ReplyDeleteElsewhere in New York State, a building contractor was arrested earlier this month on felony charges. He is charged with "multiple counts of grand larceny and scheme to defraud". Seem he took money from multiple people for home improvements but never did the work. He has not refunded the money - which totals around $6100.
ReplyDeleteGiven how long JW's had this "lifestyle" in place, I'd be amazed if she didn't owe *well* over $6100 to her various CSA and webinar customers but these people all need to come forward and file a complaint with the NYS Police. Until they do that, nothing changes.
OMG. It only takes $6100 for a felony grand larceny and scheme to defraud?? Did those people collectively file together or what? She could be in real trouble.
ReplyDeleteI have no legal background so I only know what was reported in the news. But I was also surprised that this relatively small amount qualified as a felony. I don't know the details but the report did mention multiple "victims" so I assume that several people contacted the police about this guy. I'd guess that once the reports reached a certain dollar threshold, they had no choice but to investigate and make the arrest.
DeleteI know a couple of JW's "victims" have filed complaints with the Attorney General's office but I suspect that many more will need to come forward (to establish a pattern) before any action will be taken.
I have a question for those who work at a bank. How long can a person go several months behind in their mortgage without going through foreclosure? For the term of the mortgage? Also, what types of late fees are there?
ReplyDeleteIn our 30 years of holding a mortgage, we were only late once, and that is because the post office lost, and then found, our check. There was a stiff late fee, but the mortgage company waived it since we always paid on time.
How much do you think JW has spent in late fees? I'm guessing she could have paid back the CSAers or built an adequate shelter for Merlin with the money.
http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/ny-foreclosure-laws-procedures.html
DeleteIf I remember correctly, she took out a USDA loan. The rules are a little different when it comes to foreclosure and collections on these types of loans. States also vary widely in how foreclosures are handled. It also depends on the lender involved. In my former neighborhood, we had several foreclosures. Some were sold within 90 days and others are still pending after 2+ years.
ReplyDeleteEven if she keeps dodging foreclosure, she must be spending a fortune in late fees. What a waste...
ReplyDelete90 days and foreclosure starts in some states.
ReplyDelete