What Cheyenne Sundance Made This Year

We asked Canadians, "What did you make this year?"

This is Cheyenne Sundance's story.

After backpacking across Canada as a young adult, Cheyenne Sundance was so inspired by her surroundings that she decided to establish her own farming venture when she returned home.

Cheyenne is now a successful organic farmer based in Mount Forest, Ontario. She co-founded Sundance Commons in 2019 when she was only 23, initially starting with an 800-square-foot lot in Toronto's Downsview Park. Since then, she's expanded her farm to two acres.

Today, Cheyenne runs the farm with 4 full-time staff, tending to crops, laying hens, and selling from a weekly produce box as well as farmers' markets. She grows a diverse range of greens, along with heirloom squash and other vegetables, focusing on sustainable urban farming practices. She also sells eggs and cut flowers.

Truth be told, there's more driving Cheyenne to pursue small-scale organic farming. Growing up, she didn't have a strong support system and often did not feel safe or secure. She wanted to live a different life and through farming thought she could achieve that.

“I don't just want to grow food, I want to grow community. I want to go beyond growing a great vegetable, a great crop of napa cabbage. I love to do that, of course. But I want something more. Through farming, it's possible to build both community and family."

Proof of that goal is Sundance Commons, a nonprofit arm of the business that provides land, equipment, and training to new farmers. An advocate for food education, Cheyenne hosts workshops on seed saving and composting. She also helps to educate on employable skills, such as how to operate walk-behind tractors and grow greenhouse tomatoes.

So, what did Cheyenne make this year? "A stable foundation to grow," is her answer—an important message for other entrepreneurs that her video below further emphasizes.

But before experiencing success, there were some hard things Cheyenne had to overcome—after all, she started a farm that didn't look like a farm and had limited business experience and limited resources.

"I've written some successful business grants. This is a big shift in my career because I couldn't afford large purchases. Now through saving up and running a viable business, I can finally invest in infrastructure."

That infrastructure? Caterpillar tunnels, which protect crops from winter and early spring so they can grow for 4 months longer than a regular season.

TurboTax has also been a lifeline to lead Cheyenne through the self-employed tax process, which can be daunting. “I was 23 when I started the business, and I left high school early. So I didn't really have the skills to understand math and finances. I also had a really hard time grasping payroll taxes and federal taxes.”

Cheyenne uses QuickBooks to manage her finances as her business continues to evolve. Since it's newly incorporated, she values the TurboTax tools that streamline her accounting and enhance financial clarity. This way she can focus on her missions of sustainable farming and community support.

The ability to move into a new house and a new community also symbolizes a lot for Cheyenne. It means personal security and stability. Two things she's wanted to achieve her whole life—and ones that her business has afforded her.