Derek Drake enters his hydroponic farm where he grows several types of lettuces, herbs, leafy greens and root vegetables. - Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune/TNS
CHICAGO — If it hadn’t been for the pandemic, Derek Drake would have never discovered his purpose. Furloughed from his job at Northwestern University in 2020, he asked himself: “What’s the right next move?” That move was taking his 25-year working experience in hospitality and restaurants and starting a farming business. That motto is ever present on a small dry erase board on the interior wall of a 320-square-foot hydroponic farm in a trailer container in Mokena, Illinois. The farm sits in view of a picturesque lake with catfish and bluegill, and in between Drake’s home and the chicken coop t...
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