‘I want to see more beekeepers:’ Educator shares knowledge of beekeeping with the community

‘I want to see more beekeepers:’ Educator shares knowledge of beekeeping with the community

RICHMOND, Va. (WWBT) - You can find Dr. Hollee Freeman in many places. In the classroom, speaking to a community group or surrounded by the sounds of buzzing in an apiary or garden.

Dr. Hollee Freeman at Sankofa Community Orchard

“There are 20,000 kinds of bees in the U.S.” Dr. Freeman explained. “Honey bees pollinate about 85% of our food sources. So without bees, there’s no food. So apples and cucumbers and all of that--squash, no bees, no food.”

She comes from a line of farmers and says she has always felt a connection to nature. A few years ago, she started learning from Richmond beekeeper Nikiya Ellis and it sparked something in Dr. Freeman to teach as many people as she can.

Dr. Freeman works alongside local beekeeper Nikiya Ellis to help demystify honeybees and help teach the community about their importance.(Dr. Hollee Freeman)

“[Nikiya Ellis] said to me that there’s a legend that when the sun god RA, this is ancient Egypt, ancient Kemet, when the sun god RA wept, his tears fell to the earth as pollinators. And as she said that, I just I felt it like in my DNA, I felt it,“ she said. ”I started to research how bees show up in ancient cultures. So India, China, Africa, Pakistan, Palestine, every culture has bees somewhere in their culture and songs and in medicine, and in food.”

Dr. Freeman started a program called City Bees with Ellis, to share the science, history and importance of beekeeping. Offering in person and up close experiences with a hive at the Sankofa Community Orchard in Richmond’s Southside. She also started a Black Beekeepers Coalition that has spent the last two years learning together.

“It went from the four of us standing around a bee yard in South Richmond to now we have seven folks. I think that’s wonderful because this is something that people don’t feel is attainable because you don’t see people that look like you,” said Dr. Freeman

She has also taken her knowledge and passion to a historically black university, Virginia State University. Launching the Trojan Bee Ambassador program, which includes students and staff at VSU as well as Petersburg High School students. Students are learning the ancient practice of beekeeping, spending the winter months doing online courses as they prepare for in person apiary experiences in the spring. It is one of two beekeeping classes she is currently teaching.

“I want the beekeeping program to stay around, and I definitely want to encourage more students to participate in the program, participate in beekeeping,” said students Jakada Christmas. “I love Dr. Hollee. I love her teaching style. Definitely her energy and motivation towards beekeeping has motivated me.”

For students like Lenny Williams, learning about beekeeping’s past has her excited about her own future.

“I did research on the history of bees in the Amazon forest,” said Williams. “My mom wants to start a farm when she retires. So she has given me permission to have a plot of her land to do what I want with it. I can only imagine I [will] have bees and a flower farm to keep myself occupied.”

Dr. Freeman says her class has a cultural and historical element not found in many bee courses.

She is thankful to be teaching it as well as traveling throughout Virginia and beyond, inspiring others.

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