Amanda Moreland was born in Dallas, TX, and moved to Cypress when she was three. Before joining FVC, she worked in customer service and event planning. Amanda was a team lead at MK Events where she helped clients with floral designs for weddings, funerals, and other events. She also did marketing and admin support for Gary Greene Realtors. These roles helped her learn how to build relationships, stay calm under pressure, and show up for people when it matters.
Amanda is currently a senior at Baylor University, majoring in Social Work and is expected to graduate in May, 2026. She joined FVC at the end of August as a part-time intern. Her internship with FVC focuses on policy analysis and advocacy, especially around veteran access to land, funding, and mental health care.
She is also assisting in the launch of FVC Cares, a new mental health outreach program geared towards supporting veterans through therapeutic farms.
“This internship has confirmed that my heart is in direct practice,” Amanda said. “I want to be a therapist who sits with people in their pain, helps them feel safe, and walks with them toward healing.”
She plans on pursuing her MSW and specialize in trauma-informed, culturally responsive therapy.
Although Amanda is not a veteran, her connection to agriculture runs deep. Her family has roots in ranching and she has spent time with farm animals through FFA in high school. She cares deeply about making mental health accessible to agricultural communities and designing services that suit their lives.
A big part of why Amanda is so passionate about animal-assisted therapy is due to her love of animals, especially her Border Collie, Harper. She also enjoys floral design, hiking, and volunteering.
“I believe healing can happen in a barn, in a garden, or beside a goat,” she said. “One of my dreams is to become a certified horticultural therapist and use animals in my practice to help people reconnect with nature, movement, and gentle companionship.”
Since joining, Amanda has learned so much about the diversity within agricultural communities and the barriers people face when trying to get access to support. She finds it incredibly rewarding being part of a mission-driven organization that values equity and healing.
Amanda credits her Baptist faith as her calling, saying that she’s growing in her faith and believes God has given her an emphatic heart and an understanding mind for a reason.
“I’ve lived through mental health challenges and have come out stronger, “she added. “I want to use that experience to walk with others through their pain and help them find their way back to hope. I see social work as a way to be the hands and feet of Christ in a hurting world.”
