His vision: Be the fourth generation running the family farm
Mateo Mortellaro was eight years old when he started his vegetable business by pulling his red wagon full of produce to sell in his Brockport neighborhood. Now, at 14, he has given $4,000 from his sales to an orphanage in Colombia. And his business, “Red Wagon Farms,” took a major step on July 19 by selling for the first time at the Farmers Market in Brockport.
The whole Mortellaro family was present to make Mateo’s first venture at the Farmers Market a success. Mateo and his eleven-year-old brother, Tiago, were adopted as infants from an orphanage in Bogota, Colombia. Their father, Matt Mortellaro, owns a large third-generation family farm with his brother near Elba, named G. Mortellaro & Sons, Inc. Mateo’s mother, Stephanie Mortellaro, is a certified Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher (E-RYT) with the National Yoga Alliance. She teaches at her local practice and at various regional venues and national institutes. The Mortellaros have lived in Brockport going on 20 years.
Starting with a red wagon at eight years old
“My family is a farming family, and I took to it at a very young age,” Mateo said. His father gave him one-quarter of an acre at the farm to grow his own vegetables. Mateo praises his brother for his help with the crops. At about eight years old, “I decided it would be a great idea to give back a little bit to the orphanage where I was adopted.” To do so, he began selling his vegetables out of a red wagon he pulled around his neighborhood near Brockport Middle School. The same red wagon filled with vegetables, now his business logo, was in front of the Farmers Market tent as part of the display.
Last year the whole family traveled to the Bogota CRAN Orphanage to present a $3,000 check, plus $1,000 worth of toys and supplies. Coming primarily from vegetable sales, the sum also included money Mateo earned doing odd jobs plus funds his mother helped to raise at her yoga classes. Mateo plans to keep giving to the orphanage. He has also started a Cloud web site to support the cause: Gofundme/wm9jfc.
Learning at the Simon Business School
A major advance for the enterprising Mateo was his participation last year at the Young Entrepreneurs Academy at the University of Rochester Simon Business School. Attending classes for a couple of hours each week through the year, he was instructed by business people, lawyers, accountants, and went on field trips to various businesses. “A draft designer I hired through the class helped me make my designs,” Mateo said. Mentors also helped with his business plan. At the end of the year students had to present their new business ideas to a panel of business people to request funding. Mateo asked for $550 and he was awarded $600 after his presentation. He is also now certified as DBA (Doing Business As).
A vision for the future
With this early start in the agricultural business, the rising high school freshman was asked if he intended to make it his life’s work. “Yes, I want to inherit my dad’s farm,” Mateo answered immediately. “And, I want to attend Cornell University to study agriculture.” He was also asked if he had a role model and mentor. “That would definitely have to be my dad.”
Dad’s wisdom on farming and Mateo’s possible career
Matt Mortellaro reflected on the nature of farming and Mateo’s possible career. “Over the course of 20 years, you experience both prosperity and hardship,” he mused about his 300-acre corporate farm which is thriving in the third generation. In the long view, “The future is bright for agriculture,” he said. “There is a bourgeoning global population that needs to be fed, and an awakening among Americans about dietary choices, with (increased demands for) fresh fruits and vegetables. It bodes well.” About his sons, he said, “I think it would be wonderful if either one or both decided to go into agriculture.”
But, “They can do whatever they want,” Mortellaro added, emphasizing the importance of free personal choice for a life’s career. “Regardless of what Mateo decides to do with his life, this experience (The Red Wagon business) is one he will be able to draw on.”
About the first Farm Market experience, Mortellaro said, “We did not know what to expect. But, we sold out of almost everything. We greeted old acquaintances and met new people. It was great, a really pleasant surprise. We look forward to returning.”
Photos by Dianne Hickerson
