Our beekeeping journey is now approaching its 4th year here at Faith Home. We have been keeping between 7 – 20 colonies of bees in our apiary, learning through some ups and downs. Under the leadership of our Executive Director Rick Souza, who recently became a Certified Master Beekeeper through the Apiculture program at UC Davis, what started as a small project is becoming a thriving enterprise—built around stewardship, hands-on learning, and a vision for serving our community.
This year we will be our expanding our beekeeping endeavors beyond our project/ training apiary to a small commercial bee yard with 100 hives set adjacent to the 7 acres of planted wildflowers to support colony health and quality honey production.
a growing enterprise
What’s New This Year:
- Rick is now a Certified Master Beekeeper through UC Davis, strengthening our knowledge, safety practices, and ability to teach others.
- We’re expanding our beekeeping program to welcome groups and homeschool families for hands-on training and learning experiences.
- In partnership with Hives-for-Heroes’, we’re building a pathway to mentor veterans with PTSD through beekeeping—combining purpose, skill-building, and meaningful work in a calming environment.
OUR PROCESS
As our bees continue to produce and our colonies continue to grow, we’ve been able to establish new hives, refine our approach, and improve how we bottle and produce our honey.
Expansion Plans
As our operation grows, we plan to:
- Rear queens and build out both our training and commercial apiary capabilities.
- Capture swarms from local properties when homeowners need help relocating bees safely
- Work toward a small commercial beekeeping operation that can help pollinate local orchards
Training & group visits
We’re preparing to open our beekeeping program to:
- Homeschool groups
- Youth groups
- Community organizations
- Small group training sessions
These experiences are designed to be educational, engaging, and safe—introducing visitors to hive basics, pollination, honey production, and responsible beekeeping practices.
swarm capture
Seeing a swarm on your property? We plan to offer swarm capture and relocation as our capacity grows—helping protect both people and pollinators. Availability may be limited based on season and scheduling.
Apply for the program or talk to our team today.
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