Saloma Acres with DéLana R.A. Dameron & Curtis Caesar John

A few weeks ago, I took a trip down to Columbia, South Carolina, while there I made a concerted effort to visit my good friend and Mid Strike contributor & editor Curtis Caesar John and his wife DéLana R.A. Dameron. Now most of you know Curtis as a contributor but his community efforts range a bit deeper than that and we wanted to showcase that here in this issue. During my visit I was able to stop at Saloma Acres and chat with founder DéLana about her motivations to open a ranch along with getting a tour of this BEAUTIFUL 22-acre farm with Curtis in the most pleasant and quiet South Carolina evening. It is with great pleasure that we introduce Saloma Acres to our readers and this platform. For our readers let’s get an introduction to the founder.

MSM: I must ask this; my number one question is HOW IS MS JACKSON? To clarify to our readers Ms. Jackson is not a person she is a donkey, a very outgoing and fun one I might add.

DD: Miss Jackson is great! She is definitely the farm favorite! I think since you’ve been we brought in two more donkeys (Mimi and Nippy), so now we have The Three Divas! Miss Jackson is still the loudest singer of them all. I hope our neighbors love her as much as we do.

MSM: Each year for Women's History Month we release an issue that is dedicated to women's empowerment, highlighting women in our community that are creating seismic changes. I was in awe during my visit not only of the vastness of this ranch but more so of it being BLACK OWNED!!! For me growing up in the city, in the 'hood, it's not something that's known for Black folks to dive into. Seeing this firsthand made me:

1. Extremely proud.

2. Simply amazed 

3. Once again reminded me of the strength of what black people can do.

Opening a ranch, I'm sure is no easy feat at all and a very tedious process. For our readers can you give us some insight into what this was like?