Dig In
Volunteer Spotlight
Q&A with Lauren Hansen
Lansing vegan inspired by rescued farm animals
Hansen with former dairy cow, Helen, above, and Ricky, a bantam rooster.
dairy-free as of this year as well. It’s something I’ve been working toward since I began volunteering at SASHA Farm last year and something of which I am extremely proud. The farm gave me a close-up look at how the dairy industry feeds into the meat industry and the barbaric practices that occur in both those and the egg industry — many of our animals at SASHA are visual reminders of this — and I just couldn’t in good conscience continue to eat those foods. What do you do at SASHA Farm? I have a regular shift there once a week. The work is typical farm labor: taking care of the feeding and watering of the animals, and cleaning up after them. With more than 200 animals on the farm — SASHA is the Midwest’s largest farm animal sanctuary — it’s a pretty big job. Tell us about some of the animals at SASHA Farm and the effect they have had on you. Oh wow, I feel like I could fill an entire book with stories of the animals. But, I’ll share two stories about animals who had the greatest effect on me.
Planted | 8
Mid-Michigan native Lauren Hansen is a freelance violinist and violist, dividing her time between active teaching and performing schedules. She is in her 14th season with the Lansing and Jackson symphony orchestras, and is a touring member of Lil’ Darlins Vaudeville. A veteran instructor, her teaching studio of 35 students is a staple of the Lansing-area music scene. Lauren holds a master’s degree in public health from the University of Michigan and donates her time in the field to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. She is a regular volunteer at SASHA Farm. She would like to thank her parents, Kay and Knud, for raising her and her sister, Erin, to be the animal lovers and supporters they are today.
The first is the story of Daisy and Lucky. Daisy the cow came to us last summer from a backyard butcher situation and gave birth to Lucky shortly after. She had no reason yet to trust humans and protected that baby with all the devotion and fierceness you would expect from a mother whose previous four babies had been taken soon after their births. It was touching and yet tragic at the same time. I learned this happens all the time in the dairy industry. Female cows face frequent pregnancies to keep the milk flowing, and their babies are stolen and deprived of the very milk that nature means for them. The male babies are sold for veal, and the females face the same fate as their mothers. I just couldn’t be a part of that anymore and gave up dairy shortly after. Daisy — who has since grown to trust humans — and Lucky have been happily integrated into the SASHA herd and remain wonderful reminders each week as to why I remain dairy-free. The second story is of a hundred rescued battery hens. The ladies, as we affectionately call them, could »
photos courtesy of lauren hansen
You have been vegetarian since age 4. What led to that, and why do you maintain a meat-free diet? Yes, 4 or 5. There’s some discrepancy in the family as to which year it is, but 1985 or 1986, somewhere in there. My mother had come across an article in Mother Earth News or a similar publication on how to slaughter your own chickens, a step-by-step guide type of thing. I guess it was pretty graphic and disturbed her so much that she knew she couldn’t eat meat anymore and didn’t want her family to either. So, she talked with my dad, and he was on board, and they in turn talked with my older sister and I, and the decision was made as a family to go vegetarian. The decision was definitely not a common one in those days, certainly not like today. I mean, we’re talking about a time period when ketchup was considered a vegetable for the purposes of school lunches. As such, my parents definitely encountered some skepticism and pushback from those who questioned the health and safety of a vegetarian diet, especially for children. So, while the decision was made out of compassion for animals, my mother would often tell people it was because a vegetarian diet is shown to help decrease the inflammation that is present in the autoimmune disorders that tend to run in our family. There’s never been a question in my mind as to whether or not I would remain a vegetarian. It was a source of great pride for me to be a young child growing up in a meat-free family. I’ve always felt a great sense of connection with and compassion for animals, and the idea of taking a life for something as simple and ultimately meaningless as a meal is incomprehensible. To be frank, I was so young when we changed, I have no idea what meat tastes like. For me, it’s simply never been food. I am pleased to say I am egg- and
meet Lauren