Our Story
Established in 2020…
It all started serendipitously when Kyle and Emily met in 2017 at the Lake Superior Harvest Festival while standing in line for ice cream. And the rest is history… well, there are a few more details.
Emily and Kyle always knew they wanted to start a farm and events business, and in the summer of 2020 they got the amazing opportunity to do so! They, along with Margaret (Kyle’s mom), purchased the historic Piirainen farm outside of Two Harbors.
This property has been a farm since at least 1915, when the first generation of the family immigrated from Finland and started a dairy. Over the decades, the next generations raised potatoes, veggies, horses, turkeys, hayed the fields, and stewarded the land.
We are honored to now be the stewards of this amazing chunk of land, to share its bounty and beauty with our community, and to hold space for folks to celebrate!
OUR TEAM
Kyle (he/him) grew up in Seattle, and has lived in Arizona, California, and Oregon. He is a veteran of the US Coast Guard, which brought him to Duluth in 2015. He is fantastically mechanically minded and has spent time working as a beer brewer, bike mechanic, carpenter, deck hand on tug boats, and lumber yard manager. He is the Facilities and Physical Systems Director here at Agate Acres, meaning he builds buildings, creates irrigation systems, organizes resources, fixes tractors, and moves so much snow. He also does a bit of bookkeeping. Kyle loves to bike, curl, and winter camp in his free time!
Kyle Cook - Owner
Emily (she/her) grew up in Duluth on her family's hobby farm. She has farmed on and off since 2012 in New England and Minnesota. She worked for 5+ years in the non profit world and even found herself starting and owning an outdoor gear retail store. She is a natural networker and her entrepreneurial spirit drives her. Here at Agate Acres, Emily is the Business Director and Lead Farmer and Floral Designer, spending her time building websites, crop planning and wholesale marketing, talking with prospective couples, floral design, and planning community events.
Emily Richey - Owner
Margaret (she/her) grew up in Arizona and Washington, but now calls Minnesota home. After a career in the post office as a rural letter carrier, she dived deep into the world of plants! She worked at a GIANT greenhouse in Washington and now cares for lots of plants here at Agate Acres. She designed and built the pollinator garden in the house’s front yard and has quite the collection of house plants! She has dubbed herself Agate Acres’ Professional Farm Assistant. In her free time, Margaret likes to sew, listen to live music, and usher plays. Margaret is Kyle’s mom.
Margaret Hart
Lily (she/her) grew up along the North Shore and has called Duluth, MN home for almost a decade. Lily has years of industry service work, education, retail and social services within her multifaceted tool belt. As your Events Coordinator, Lily looks forward to working in tandem with you to make your events dreams come to life! Lily loves a good book, a cup of fancy coffee, and working with people.
Lily Mead - Events Coordinator
Krista Padgett - Wedding Coordinator
Krista enjoys the natural beauty and endless outdoor activities of living on the North Shore. You can often find her and her family in the woods, garden, or water. You may also find her in the kitchen. Krista has built a whole dang career out of her love of connecting people around a dinner table. If you really can’t find her any of those other places, check around the farm at Agate Acres. As wedding coordinator she will be scurrying around ensuring every detail is *just right* for a seamless day. She might also be somewhere petting Dera or Pretzel. It’s a toss up.
Jillian (she/her) lives in Two Harbors with her family of 3, 1 dog and 5 chickens. She wears many hats at Agate Acres but mostly helps Emily with all the administrative tasks of running a farm and wedding venue. Jillian is a block print artist, loves all things Minnesotan, hiking, paddling & gardening.
Jillian Helleloid - Admin Assistant
Liz (she/her) grew up in Southeast Michigan spent the three years after college living in Sitka, Alaska, where she worked at a state non-profit focused on domestic and sexual violence. Liz moved to Duluth in August of 2024 and have been working at Northern Waters Smokehaus since the fall (stop by and try the Cajun Finn if you haven't already!). Outside of work she also love printmaking, collaging, consuming pop culture, and getting active outside!
Liz Leonard - Farm Crew
Olivia (she/her) is super excited to be spending the summer with Agate Acres! She grew up in Saint Paul, and have spent her last few years splitting her time between guiding on the North Shore and mushing sled dogs in Alaska. She loves spending time outside any way she can, and she also enjoys crafting, sudoku puzzles, and cooking meals with friends!
Olivia Frank - Farm Crew
Kylli grew up on a hobby farm near Bemidji, sparking a lifelong love for the land and wild places. Her adventures have taken her from the Boundary Waters to Kenya to New Zealand — but now she’s putting down roots in the Northwoods! When she’s not tending plants or exploring trails, you’ll find her dancing to live music or jumping into Lake Superior!
Kylli Anderson - Farm Crew
Pretzel - Farm Cat
Pretzel the cat was born on a farm in Aitkin MN in the spring of 2016. After apartment life in his younger years, he is JAZZED to be living on the farm. Pretzel is a great mouser, companion while weeding, and the ultimate cuddler. In his free time he likes to sleep, stare into the wood stove, and eat fancy cat food.
Dera started her life as a stray in North Dakota. After surviving parvo and having a litter of puppies, she came to Agate Acres in the spring of 2021. She is a Siberian husky, Australian Cattle Dog, and Brittany Spaniel mix and a heck of a farm dog. She is a better mouser than Pretzel, great with chickens, loves people, and puts up with other dogs. She too, is quite the cuddler. In her free time, she likes to get the zoomies, sleep, hide bones, and do her darnedest to catch the red squirrels.
Dera - Farm Dog
Our Mission
Agate Acres Farm & Events aims to encourage
connection to food, community, and place by
stewarding the land, providing space to gather,
and cultivating celebration.
Our Vision
The vision for Agate Acres Farm & Events is to be a
fruitful and sustainable, seasonal business that
embodies the values of fun, quality, stewardship,
community, welcoming, creativity, and honesty. The
farm strives to achieve its mission through a
balanced mix of agricultural production and event
hosting.
