Like many of you, I was a member of FFA in high school and then a member of collegiate FFA. The heart and soul of National FFA is the local chapter. That is where it all begins.
Farmers and ranchers don’t shy away from hard work. When there’s a storm coming, we band together to bring the crops in. When our neighbors need a hand rebuilding, we pack our tools in our trucks and head right over.
Tractors are in the streets in Paris, Rome, Brussels and many other cities and towns across Europe this winter.
Like much of the news anymore, the initial numbers from the Census of Agriculture were accurately reported, quickly downplayed — or even worse, ignored — by most Big Ag groups and then just pushed aside.
The investment and protection of the next generation to enter agriculture or keep their family farm running has long been a priority at Farm Bureau.
“We take care of our own.” This phrase is often used to share empathy and love freely, and it was recently freely shared with my farming family.
While my father milked cows and farmed for almost 50 years, I never heard him say he loved — or, for that matter, even liked — either cows or farming.
Recently, a retired friend asked if I planned to retire anytime soon. It was the right question. While I have considered retirement, I explained, I have no real plans — soon or otherwise — to do so.
From a window atop my grandfather’s old barn, you can see my family’s whole farm, from the hayfields to the chicken houses to the pasture where the mama cows are grazing.