INDIAN RIVER COUNTY, Fla. – At 14, Joseph Semprevivo can tell you a lot about self-sustainability. He strives to live it every day while enjoying the things that a high school student can.
When he isn’t engaged in class or serving as president or vice president of the local chess, archery and Florida 4-H clubs, he is focused on tending to the animals on his family’s Vero Beach ranch. You might also see him growing and selling his own herbs, vegetables, fruit, eggs. He even makes his own organic fertilizer.
Now, as the proud winning entry of the Florida 4-H Dairy Heifer Chain Program, Semprevivo is taking his first steps toward possibly establishing his own cattle herd as he continues his sustainable lifestyle. Thanks to the generosity of Robin and D.J. McGlothern, the owners of Irish Oaks Farms in Belle Glade, the Florida 4-H program has selected Semprevivo to receive one of the farm’s dairy heifers, Cocoa. Now the Florida 4-H youth is on a journey to raise the calf, show her at local fairs and educate others about reducing their footprint.