Santiago and Julie Valdez say the Heroes to Hives program offers a sweet opportunity to expand their business and connect with other beekeepers who are veterans.

The Valdezes offer homemade organic candles and bath and personal care items in grocery stores, boutiques, online and at farmers markets. Their Raw Buzz products come from a hive in their backyard and one at Julie’s family farm, where she also gets goat milk for products.

Julie began the business about three years ago, after receiving an economics degree. She sold goat milk soap at farmers markets and made candles in her basement and packaged them in baby food jars.

What she lacked in business background, she made up in grit and determination, Santiago says. Coming from a family of small-business owners, Julie met bumps in the road with a “let’s find a solution” approach.

CREATING A BUSINESS: Senior Airman Santiago Valdez and his wife, Julie, are polishing their beekeeping skills in MU Extension’s Heroes to Hives program, which teaches veterans and their families about beekeeping. The couple’s backyard hive provides honey and beeswax for their Raw Buzz microbusiness.

The two pitched their product by making personal visits to retail markets. They found a friend in Meyer’s Market Burg in Warrensburg, Mo., a business owned by another veteran family. About 50 stores, including some Hy-Vees, now carry their products.

They still work out of their basement but hope to own a brick-and-mortar store someday. As the economy slowed during the COVID-19 pandemic, they were happy they had low overhead and no debt.

Farmers market and special events remain good markets, Julie says. As parents, they make the most of their time by each taking one child and going to different weekend events.

Heroes to Hives taught them about the equipment and methods to safely harvest honey and beeswax. The Valdezes say the class also helped them learn how beekeeping differs by geographic region.

Classes for beekeepers

The University of Missouri Extension’s Heroes to Hives program is the first state chapter modeled after a program offered through Michigan State University and its partners. MU Extension agronomist Travis Harper teaches the classes at the Mitchell Street Farm at the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg.

Response in the pilot year was amazing, he says. Initially, he hoped for about 20 to 30 students. More than 290 Missouri veterans signed up, a mix of “new-bees” and skilled beekeepers.

Reasons for taking the class vary, Harper says. Some want to improve the environment for pollinators. Others want honey for themselves or in a business. Some just enjoy connecting with other veterans.

SWEET SOAP: Julie Valdez makes soap with honey and oatmeal in her basement for her Raw Buzz microbusiness. The honey comes from a backyard hive and one on the family farm. She says the Heroes to Hives program helps her and her husband learn how to improve their honey-making operation to grow their business.

The MU Heroes to Hives program is about more than classroom work, says Santiago, a mechanic in the 509th Maintenance Group at Whiteman Air Force Base in nearby Knob Knoster. The most valuable rewards come from making connections with other veterans.

“Being around other beekeepers who are willing to share advice is amazing,” he says. “And they are all veterans, so there is a connection I can’t describe. When you leave the military, people miss the camaraderie. Heroes to Hives brings veterans together in another community. It’s just a good recipe.”

Help for veterans

Missouri is home to more than 440,000 veterans making the transition from military to civilian life, says Karen Funkenbusch, state director of the Missouri AgrAbility Project and the Heroes to Hives program.

The USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture supports the program, which offers veterans facing challenges — including anxiety, depression, service-related health issues and disabilities — a way to find personally rewarding career opportunities.

TEACHING OTHERS: MU Extension agronomist and beekeeper Travis Harper teaches veterans and their families how to do beekeeping. MU’s Heroes to Hives program is the first state chapter modeled after a program offered through Michigan State University and its partners.

“These challenges are exacerbated by the loss of the camaraderie and support inherent in military units,” Funkenbusch says. “Transitioning vets often feel a sense of isolation and loss. Heroes to Hives offers veterans a chance to reconnect with their brothers and sisters in arms with a common mission of protecting the most important managed pollinator on the planet.”

For more information, the following MU Extension publications are available for free download:

Beekeeping Tips for Beginners

Honeybees as Pollinators, Their Habitats and Products

Geist is a senior information specialist for MU Extension.