Western Palm Beach County has been home to my family for more than 100 years.

My grandparents were farmers who moved here from Iowa. My mother was a schoolteacher, and my late father was a circuit court judge. Thirty years ago, my husband and I moved back home to help on the family farm after my father passed away.

What drew me home is what still makes the Glades special: a genuine sense of community. People say hello. They know your family. They ask about your children and grandchildren. And when a neighbor needs something, you treat them with respect.

That is why it was so jarring to be served with court papers a few weeks ago by a Texas-based energy company seeking access to our property for a pipeline.

Let me be clear: we support a strong domestic energy industry. We understand that South Florida needs additional energy infrastructure, including pipelines and power lines, to support its growth.

But supporting infrastructure does not mean landowners should be expected to simply roll over when their property and livelihoods are at stake. That won’t happen here.

Our small farm, Sugar & Spice, is part of the Sugar Cane Growers Cooperative of Florida, a group of 44 family farms. We take tremendous pride in agriculture, in caring for the land, in supporting jobs and in contributing to the Glades community.

For us, our land is not a line on a project map. It is our livelihood. It is part of our family’s history. And it comes with a responsibility to steward it for the generation that comes next.

Florida Gas Transmission (FGT) wants to construct a 38-mile pipeline connecting two Florida Power & Light facilities. We understand the need for infrastructure. What we do not understand is why pursuing that infrastructure should come at the expense of treating Florida landowners with respect.

There is a right way and a wrong way to work with your neighbors.

In the Glades, we know the difference.