Industrious alumni farmers proud of their Penn College roots

With farming in their blood and their alma mater in their corner, an alumni couple – who met on campus in the Spring 2016 semester – is working hard to turn a Christmas tree operation into a year-round celebration of Pennsylvania agriculture.

Penn College graduates Grace E. Scott-Wasson ('19, health information technology) and Bryan M. Wasson ('17, landscape/horticulture technology: plant production emphasis) started Wasscott Fields and Farm in Centre Hall several years ago, parlaying their background into a fledgling family business. He is a fourth-generation dairy farmer from Centre Hall and she is a fifth-generation produce farmer from Winfield by way of Connecticut.

“Bryan and I both care a lot for the farm life but, when I started college, I knew I couldn’t make a go unless I got a degree in something else to help offset the future costs of farming,” Grace said. “Bryan had already attended Central Pennsylvania Institute and held some certifications for horticulture and landscaping. He decided to move on to PCT and add more knowledge to his life book.”

The college was not an unfamiliar place, and Bryan and Grace chuckle over a pretty cool connection.

His parents, David Wasson and Catherine (Williamson) Wasson – a dairy farmer from Centre Hall and a small-town girl from Port Trevorton (in the same Union/Snyder counties area as Grace’s hometown) – both graduated from Williamsport Area Community College.

“They met in college, then married and moved to Centre Hall,” Grace said. “Now, as history repeats, Bryan and I have done the same!”

The couple had a son during Grace's final year at Penn College, and she appreciates how accommodating faculty were.

“The professors in the HIT program were great with me being a commuting new mom,” she said. “Forever grateful for the support, because I work in the field and enjoy my job.”

Her husband's interest in tree farming was born of working years at Tannenbaum's, a neighboring Christmas tree farm, while growing up. When owners Craig and Martha Weidensaul mentioned they were moving to a retirement home and would no longer be planting, Bryan knew it was time. The couple started their farm on land that Bryan bought during his final year at Penn College.

“Ten acres was the start of it,” Grace recalled. “Bryan took a year to work the ground and grow some cover crops. In spring of 2019, we planted our first seedlings. That year was horrible for drought and we lost a decent amount of the seedlings, but nevertheless we kept on pushing.”

Each spring since, she said, the farm has grown by 1,500 to 2,000 seedlings. As they wrap up the 2023 holiday season, they're already looking forward to what 2024 has in store.

“This coming year, we will have filled all but an acre of our 10 with trees,” Grace noted. “We hope to expand by purchasing more ground, and our first projected year for cut-your-own tree is 2026.”

It hasn't stopped with trees, however. The couple has used the little remaining space to grow strawberries, which Grace's dad did successfully for 25 years.

“We want to be an all-around farm that can offer a little bit of something for each season,” Grace said. “We strive for PA-grown only and like to support other local farmers. It's important to us to have quality and also help the public understand all that goes into the food on their table.”

Bryan has grown sweet corn since he was in high school; this year and last, he grew four to five acres'’ worth and sold it locally. This past year, in spite of full-time jobs and a busy home life (a daughter joined the family during these postgraduate years), the couple decided to start a produce stand a two-weekend fall festival – both of which were successful.

“We have a lot going some days and occasionally we get caught up, but when January rolls around and we sit looking at seed catalogs and browsing the internet articles on new and upcoming agricultural items, we are so glad that we had the opportunity to attend PCT,” Grace said. “And not that we will impose it, but it will be highly recommended to our kids!”