In 2015, Miyoko Matsuda offered the Land Trust an exclusive negotiation to purchase the last 12 acres of Matsuda Farm. Matsuda Farm is one of the last remaining historic Japanese American farms on Vashon Island. The Matsuda family embraced the Land Trust’s vision of bringing the farm back into food production and honoring the rich history of the place. Today, the Land Trust is dedicated to expanding our Farm-to-School program, supporting food access, and demonstrating regenerative agriculture.

In 2022, Ray Gruenewald donated five acres of the original Matsuda Farm to the Land Trust. Ray had lovingly planted the pasture in native trees and named it Mary Matsuda Gruenewald Forest in honor of his mother, who was living on the farm when she was torn from high school and her community and wrongfully imprisoned during WW2. Her own account of internment can be read in her memoir Looking Like the Enemy.

We understand that the history of this place is complicated, so we are providing you with a longer version researched and written by board member Tom Spring here.