“The Captain and the Farmer” sounds like the title of a summer novel, full of colorful characters and earthy plot lines. On the Eastern Shore, it describes a real-life husband and wife. Patrick Gormandy works the water aboard his family’s shrimp boat, and his wife, Kathy, works the land on a small flower and vegetable farm. Together, the Fairhope shrimp boat captain and the flower farmer have built a life around selling the freshest food and flowers they can, directly to the people who enjoy them.
A Shrimp Boat Named for Grandfather
Patrick is the Captain. He owns the shrimp boat Captain Sam B, named for his grandfather. Patrick started shrimping as a child alongside his father and worked with him for years. When his father retired, Patrick bought the boat, left his other job and began shrimping full time.
His business name, Heritage Seafood, is a nod to carrying on that family tradition. Kathy says the decision to go full time was an easy one to understand. “He was never as happy as when he had just come in off the water,” she explains.
Family boats like the Captain Sam B are part of a long shrimping heritage on Mobile Bay and the Alabama coast, where generations of families have made a living trawling for brown and white shrimp. The work follows the rhythms of the seasons and the state’s regulations, which open and close waters to shrimping to protect young shrimp as they grow.
Buying Shrimp Straight Off the Boat
Heritage Seafood sells its catch right off the boat at the Fairhope Docks Marina, at the end of Seacliff Drive. Patrick posts on social media when the boat is coming in, and customers show up with ice chests to load up on heads-on shrimp.
For some longtime Mobile Bay residents, the experience brings back childhood memories of buying shrimp directly from boats on Dog River. Dockside sales were once a common part of coastal life, and they remain one of the best ways to get seafood at its freshest.
During shrimping season in 2022, the Sam B docked about twice a week, with large shrimp priced at $5 to $6 a pound, caught so recently that they had been swimming into the nets that same day. The business grew quickly by word of mouth. In the early days, only three or four customers might turn up when the boat came in. By 2022, there were long lines, and the catch frequently sold out within an hour or two.
That direct connection is the heart of what Patrick does: giving customers the unique experience of buying the freshest seafood possible, straight from the person who caught it.
Shoppers buying heads-on shrimp should plan to keep them well iced and cook or freeze them promptly. Many cooks prefer heads-on shrimp for their flavor, and the heads and shells make an excellent base for seafood stock, gumbo and bisque.
From Vegetables to a Flower Business
Kathy is the Farmer. In 2016, as a single mother, she bought a home on three acres with dreams of farming. When she married Patrick in 2017, P and K Farm was born.
She began by growing vegetables and herbs for her family and the local community. To brighten her farmers market booth, she added flowers, and soon discovered that her blooms were the most popular thing she sold. She steadily expanded flower production and now sells wholesale to florists and retail shops as well as directly to consumers.
Her flowers include favorites such as zinnias, sunflowers and cosmos, picked the morning they are delivered. Kathy offers delivery to customers’ doors, so a bouquet can go from the field to a kitchen table in a matter of hours.
Locally grown cut flowers have gained popularity nationwide in recent years, as more buyers look for blooms that have not been shipped long distances. Flowers cut close to home can arrive fresher, and many local growers produce varieties that do not ship well, giving their arrangements a garden-grown look that differs from typical imported bouquets.
Plans to Grow, and a Children’s Book
In 2022, Kathy outlined ambitious goals for P and K Farm: expanding the production area, doubling spring flower output the following year and continuing to build soil health.
“We have invested in new equipment which will allow us to scale up to meet the demand for fresh locally grown flowers in our area,” she said. “We plan to create a flower studio and workshop space to facilitate classes, hands-on activities, and events for our customers.”
Kathy also wrote a children’s book, “David’s Farm – Healthy Soil,” which she said was set to be released in the fall of 2022. It was inspired by her son, David, who is often by her side in the field. “It is a soil-focused children’s book that touches on compost, worms, beneficial insects, and how healthy soil grows the best food and flowers,” she said.
Soil health is a growing focus for small farms. Practices such as composting, reducing tillage and encouraging beneficial insects help build organic matter, retain moisture and support the microorganisms that feed plants, principles that translate naturally into lessons for young readers.
High School Bandmates, Reunited
Both Patrick and Kathy grew up on the coast, she in Loxley and he in Mobile. They first met as students at McGill-Toolen Catholic High School in Mobile, where they played in the band together. They reconnected 20 years later and married in 2017.
Today, their work keeps them close to nature on both land and sea. One spends his days on the water, the other in the soil, and both make a living doing what they love while offering their community something increasingly rare: food and flowers that go straight from the source to the customer.
How to Buy From the Captain and the Farmer
- Heritage Seafood: Follow the business on social media for announcements about when the Captain Sam B is returning to the Fairhope Docks Marina with fresh shrimp. Arrive promptly, since the catch often sells out quickly, and bring an ice chest.
- P and K Farm: Look for Kathy’s flowers through local florists and retail shops, at farmers markets, or order directly for delivery.
- Check seasonality: Shrimp availability depends on the shrimping season and conditions on the water, and flower varieties change throughout the growing year.
Whether it is a cooler full of heads-on shrimp or an armful of just-cut zinnias, the couple offers a reminder that some of the best things on the Eastern Shore come straight from the bay and the field.