Olivette Pena Fisher & Hernandez Family Farm
Olivette Pena Fisher describes her Ollie Oats as a “convenient little pouch of goodness” that you can eat right out of the package.
She created Ollie Oats in January of 2023, shortly after completing treatments for cancer. She says she has always been a busy and active person. Her son Robbie encouraged her to find something to do.
“We were trying to think of what to sell, and Robbie and my niece, Anissa, suggested selling overnight oats,” Pena Fisher says. “I have been making overnight oats since my twins were toddlers, and the idea just grew from there.”
Two months later, she was ready to unveil her product. Ollie Oats is a family affair as her husband, children and even her mother pitch in every week to help get her product to the markets.
Pena Fisher is free of cancer. In March she will mark her one-year anniversary of sharing her Ollie Oats and selling it to the public.
Tell us about Ollie Oats.
I start by combining our rolled oats with super foods such chia, flax and pumpkin seeds. There is no added sugar because the sweetness comes from dried fruit, dates and coconuts. I offer six varieties, a carrot cake version but only in the fall.
Our product is a healthy meal, but what we are really providing is convenience to our customers. They can pour their favorite plant- or dairy-based milk right into the eco-friendly rice paper package. Simply refrigerate for three to four hours or overnight, and when it’s ready, you can eat right from the pouch. The best part is there is no need for a messy cleanup.
What do you like about selling at the farmers’ markets?
I enjoy meeting and talking to people. I was a teacher and a school administrator for 34 years. When I was diagnosed with cancer and had to begin treatment, I had to stop working, so I retired. I was so used to being around people, I missed that.
I could have sold Ollie Oats from home, but I wanted to get out there to the farmers’ market. I have run into people that I have not seen in a long time. It also gives me joy to meet and hear the customers’ reactions. People tell me, “Oh, wow, I can take it to work or when I travel,” and I have parents sending Ollie Oats to their kids at college. Your husband says the whole experience in making Ollie Oats has brought a smile to your face, and that has been part of your recovery.
As I smile, my husband means that Ollie Oats has given me purpose and optimism in this new lease on life. I enjoy the new outlook and spending time with the people that supported, loved and continue wishing me well.
Ollie Oats has helped me embrace my emotions and make the most of every day. It brings a smile to my face because I feel that little by little I am helping people make better eating choices that are just “smart eating.”
Antonio and Adriana Hernandez, and their six-yearold daughter Jodie-Faith live outside of Edinburg on their 3-acre property. It’s a life they dreamt of, living in the country and having a farm. They grow vegetables and fruits and raise organic-fed chickens for their fresh eggs.
What they are really known for is the exotic fruit they grow — 40 varieties of dragon fruit and more than 20 different kinds of other fruit, such as starfruit, passion fruit, avocado, sugar apple, cherimoya, guanabana, ice cream bean, guava, longan, luffa, berries, the list continues.
“One of the directors of the Heart of the Valley Farmers Market searched for dragon fruit and that led her to our Facebook page, and that’s how it happened,” says Ariana. Then another market found us, then recently another and now we sell at three markets.” The Hernandezes have a dream to retire from their current fulltime jobs and start their very own little family farmers market from home and pass the business to Jodie-Faith, who now says she wants to “be a farmer” like her mom and dad when she grows up.
How did you start gardening?
Since we were small children, my husband and I have always had a thing for gardening with our parents. However, the irony, being young migrant workers, contracted to work in fields for many years, was not really our passion. As adults, now with good careers and since meeting each other, gardening has actually become a great stress reliever from work life, and such a rewarding recreational hobby for our little family, that grew even more with the recent pandemic. We had a lot more time on our hands, so we started gardening more together. My young daughter would always say how she loved her new life and family because we were able to be home together and have fun outside and eat yummy food.
How did you get into growing exotic fruits?
I have always loved exotic fruit and plants. And when I found out there were so many kinds of fruit trees and plants that could grow here in the Valley, especially so many varieties of dragon fruit, I went crazy. So many people see the different types of exotic fruit and beautiful tropical fruit we grow and sell, and when we let them taste it, they love it.
My husband and daughter also started raising organic-fed chicks and chickens almost two years ago, which we now have about 70. With so many eggs, we have been able to sell at least 30 dozen a week at the markets. Now we have expanded our crop areas to grow even extra goodies for the markets.
You enjoy gardening and participating in the farmer markets?
When people ask us why we have so many farm animals, raise chickens and garden so much and now find the time to do farmers markets, my response is it’s not only one of our family stress relievers, but it is our family time together, away from the daily battles of the world. And it is one of our happy places. And when you find happiness in a family activity, you will make time for it.
