by PAUL CATALA
Photos provided by Agape Family Farms
For Frank Izquierdo, farming isn’t just a business – it’s a complete way of life. He and his wife, Yolanda, own Agape Family Farms in Sebring.
Situated on six acres, the Izquierdos have set out to make their farm a place for communal gatherings, fun, picnics, and the arts. But above all, they want it to be a place where visitors can always find the best and freshest fruits, veggies, and farm-to-table fare.
Frank Izquierdo, 50, was born in Batabano, Cuba, about 60 miles south of Havana. As a child, his now-deceased godfather, Rene Soto, took him to the family farm, cultivating a love for farming at a young age.
“My godfather instilled in me taking care of the ground and getting things from it. He was like a dad to me,” Izquierdo explains.
When he was 5, his family came to the United States during the Mariel boatlifts of 1980 and ultimately settled down in Miami.
The couple moved to Sebring four and a half years ago after traveling through on the way to a Boy Scout camp and falling in love with Highland Hammock State Park.
Making a living from the ground commenced for the Izquierdos — who have a son, Frank Jr., 13 – at an Agape Family Farms ribbon-cutting March of 2024. That day, they were able to show off some of their crops, including decorative flowers, cucumbers, tomatoes, carrots, lettuce, potatoes, and herbs that are nurtured with the help of two other farmers.
Agape currently has two to three swine, as well as chickens, goats, donkeys and emus. Next season, the farm will expand into cattle.
Agape Family Farms also features a petting zoo, children’s gardening programs, musicians, and field trips. It hosts corporate events and line dancing, foam parties, and even “slime battle parties” for children. There will be a Fall Festival on Oct. 4. with pumpkins to carve and paint and other activities for children.
The farm is known for its culinary events. Frank is also a self-taught chef who started in the cooking business in a bakery at age 7. At the farm’s open-air restaurant, he offers complete farm-to-table breakfasts and lunches on Saturdays and Sundays.
Starting September 27, he will be offering Saturday Night Farm-to-Table Dinners from 6 to 9 p.m. He plans for those to continue throughout the year. For $65 per person, diners will get complete “all-you-can-eat” meals with grilled chicken, beef and pork, vegetables, and desserts prepared by three cooks. Izquierdo says 75 percent of the food served will come from Agape, while other ingredients will come from other Florida farms, such as avocados from Homestead.
“Everything is always going to be what we culled from the farm, the fields and then it goes forward. We prepare all the meals from scratch,” he says.
Izquierdo adds that the meats come from private farms in the area.
“It’s important because I know where everything is coming from; it’s only a drive away. We are leaving the money for the farms here in Florida and lastly, the most important, I know the farmers and we know each other by name.”
The Saturday dinners will require reservations so Izquierdo will know how much food to fix for the evening.
The Izquierdos say they want to continue to expand farm operations and continue to “interchange” harvests with other private farms in Florida.
For information, visit www.agapefamilyfarms.com.