Stressed flight crew flock to ‘funny’ farm
Stressed JetBlue JFK staff vie for garden slot
They’re trying to stay grounded in the not-so-friendly skies.
Green-thumbed JetBlue crewmembers are flocking to their company-run farm at JFK Airport in an attempt to escape the boiling tensions of their high-flying profession.
With the aviation community under siege by cranky customers and constant p.r. nightmares, the number of serenity seekers at the 24,000-square-foot vegetable garden has taken off.
“The amount of people wanting to come has spiked, and people are even planning their workdays around stopping by,” said JetBlue spokeswoman Tamara Young.
When the Terminal 5 farm launched in 2015, about 420 volunteer slots were offered on Fridays between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. from May through October. That number more than doubled in 2016, to 1,145 — and has now skyrocketed to 1,728 slots filling up fast.
“The slots fill up quickly each week,” Young said Friday — as her colleagues dealt with their most recent headache, when a JetBlue flight from White Plains to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., had to make an emergency landing in Charleston, SC, because the cockpit filled up with smoke.
Serenity-now-seeking staffers can use an online company portal to snag one of 18 spots. Slots are only available on Fridays.
And crew members are lining up for a breath of fresh air at the farm, which is planted in 2,000 milk crates stacked up on a strip of pavement by T5’s departure doors. “The outdoors and gardening is known to relieve stress,” Young said.
Katherina Polanco, a gate-operations worker based at Newark Airport, waited months to destress on the farm.
“The slots were always filled up, but I finally got to come today,” said Polanco, 29, who planted carrots on Friday.
“Work can be stressful a lot of the time, but gardening helps me keep a positive mind-set.”
Jonathan Romero, a crew accommodations coordinator, was especially eager to unwind with plant life after a tough week handling flight cancellations during Tropical Storm Cindy.
“Being outside and taking a step away from the stressful situation is so important for relief,” said Romero, 27, while patting down a handful of soil.
“The plants don’t talk back to me,” he joked.
Jolene Aubel, 53, touched down at JFK from Salt Lake City for a mere seven hours just to visit the farm.
“I’ve been waiting a long time to come here,” said Aubel, who works in customer service in Utah. “After being cooped up so much, it’s good for me to get out.”
Designated JetBlue farmer Bradley Fleming instructs volunteers what must get done each week, such as planting, watering, pruning and pest control.
Volunteers get to keep any of the 26 types of vegetables grown on the farm, such as arugula, beets, carrots, chives, dill, fennel, garlic, okra, onion, blue potatoes, garlic and spinach.
Each green was carefully picked not to have seeds to attract birds, which are hazardous to airplanes.
All the extra food is donated to the Food Bank for New York City.