AlB-Lanca>ter Farming, Saturday, May 31,1986 Moser Named National Finalist in Holstein Competition BALLY Long distance is the next best thing to being there.-This statement is especially true for Sandy Moser of Berks County, as she has been receiving good news by the phone lately. At thp beginning of May she received a long distance phone call at her college in Baltimore. Her mother was on the line to inform her that the Pennsylvania State Holstein office had just called to congratulate her on being named a semi-finalist in the National Distinguished Junior Member Awards competition. Sandy Moser began her trek to the final 12 by winning the Penn sylvania title in February. Due to college commitments, however, She was unable to attend the State Holstein Convention, and the news of her winning was also relayed by a long distance call. Moser recently completed her freshman year at Loyola College where she is majoring in English/creative writing, which is one of her loves. Another one of her loves has been her Holsteins. Upon learning of her prestigious accomplishment, Moser explains she was “really surprised.” She thought that it was necessary to follow a prescribed list of achievements to be a national finalist. Moser was simply too busy with numerous other activities to complete the menu. “Once I stopped thinking about it, that’s when it happened; and I never expected Nationals,” she relates. “The book” was the basis for the judges’ selection of Moser. “My book is always a little more per sonal than everybody else’s,” she said. She credits her art background in creating a consistent, unique layout for her junior scrapbook. On the back of every separation for each section was a geometric design with black, white and red; giving her book that extra touch, the fruits of much labor. The finishing touches for her book was the tost page where she included a story she had written. Moser almost didn’t compete this year, due to the extensive amount of time needed to compile a winning book. This required time to come home from college and fill in the book. It was her list of published Stories that Moser thinks might have swayed the judges in her Sandy reviews the scrapbook which contains clippings of the approximately ISO times her work has been published. Her writing has earned her such names as "Barnyard Poet,” “Rural Rhymer," and “Bally Balladeer." - favor. “I think they looked at my book and said ‘This is something different that we’ve never seen before.’ ” Her Holsteins, the subject of “the book” and a source for her writing, have also provided college tuition dollars. Reluctantly, Moser has sold some of her Holsteins to finance her education. Plans are being made to sell a very good Pete daughter out of a Bootnik which Moser originally bought at the Exclusive Sale. The Futurity is the next challenge for Moser during her tenure in the Junior Holstein Association. She is planning to win the Futurity with a recently fresh Cittamatt daughter from the Pete cow. “It’s the last thing I want to do as a junior,” Moser notes. In addition to winning county and district’ shows with her Holsteins, Moser was a member of the Berks County 4-H Dairy Bowl team that won the National Championship in Kentucky last year. “I guess we tried to psyche everyone out. It was our last year and we decided no one was stealing it from us since we couldn’t come back again,” she reflected. Contests, such as dairy bowl and judging, have provided her with pleasant memories of her 4-H career. “There’s just something, when you’re all in it together, and you all know that one of us can win and I’m not going to care if it’s not me and it’s you. You even forget after awhile who won, and of course it doesn’t matter because you’re happy enough,” Moser commented. While still busy with the Dairy Bowl, Moser began her freshman year at college, which proved to be anything but dull. Next year, she adds, promises to be “a great and busy year.” Rising from the ranks of staff writer this past year, she will be an associate editor of Green and Gray, the college newspaper. Moser was on the editorial board for the Garland, a collegiate literary magazine, as well as a contributor to the Forum, a bi yearly magazine that publishes the best essays of the semester. Moser also finds time to work in the public relations department, which led to working on the volunteer chore and manning the phones during the college’s phonathon. A phone call led to another piece of good news for Moser at the end of the spring semester. An essay which she had prepared for the Baltimore Sun was accepted and printed on the Op-Ed page. Publication of this essay, which deals with attics and their con tents, fills a goal Moser established for herself at the start of the semester. It will rank her as the youngest member of Loyola College to have something printed on that page. This year she also broke “a biggie” with publication in Farm Journal. Other periodicals which have printed her poetry and short stories are Lancaster Fanning, Hoard’s Dairyman, Farm Women News, Dairy Illustrated, and the various local newspapers. This names just a few of the ap proximately 150 times she has been published. Her farm oriented stories have drawn letters providing advice, compliments and an occassional request to correspond or marry, Moser mentioned. “It’s fun. I get letters addressed to Mrs. Moser since I never make the distinction and I often talk about Dad referring to him as the man who shares my name,” she added. Moser originally started writing at age 5 “to make my dad laugh. When I was little, I always thought he worked too hard,” she explains. One of her early subjects was a heifer that was “pretty stupid” and provided sufficient subject matter. She writes when the idea strikes and records it on whatever is handy. At times, her writing equipment consists of cow towels and a breeding chart pen or an old newspaper. In the midst of a college party, or in the early hours of a day, she can be found penning a new idea. In tenth grade Moser became serious about her writing. She credits her family for making writing “easy” and for their en couragement. Her father, LaVerne, has been a topic for many essays and her mother, Linda, first suggested Moeer submit her works. ' Last summer, she sang her way through Europe after winning a place with the American Music Abroad organization. She has continued her singing career by participating in the college choir for two semesters. Prior to college, she and her brother, Mark, did all of the milking. Control of the breeding decisions for her cows remains with Moser, but she will accept her family’s judgement when she is away. Lalisa Holsteins is a family farm in the strictest sense. Major decisions are discussed by the entire family and the family works together to get the work done. “Our family works together Acreage Reduction Programs Post CREAMERY - Calling the preliminary figures “a near record signup,” Eugene F. Thompson, ASCS state executive director, announced that over a quarter of the eligible farms in Pennsylvania have signed up 588,332 acres of feed grain and wheat bases under the 1986 acreage reduction programs. The acreage required to be taken out of production and devoted to the Acreage Conservation Reserve totals 122,174 acres. The enrolled acreage represents 46 percent of the 1,289,497 acres of total crop acreage bases established for these commodities. For the 1985 programs, 36 7 per Sandy Moser, a national finalist for the Distinguished Junior Member of the Holstein Association, proudly shows one of her 4-H projects. Sandy plans to sell this very good Pete daughter, who has records up to 20,000, later this summer. herd. really well. I don’t think wwcooW complement each other anymore than we do now.” she said, com menting on the individual talents of each family member. Reflecting on her ac complishments, “I don’t think I’ve ever done anything that I can say I wish I wouldn’t have,” Moser stated. The following is a sample of Moser’s writing expertise: The Pain of Rain The baler is all ready to make its journey to the field; the hay is rolled and drying and it looks like a promising yield. ‘Near Record’ Signup cent of the 1,244,822 acre crop acreage base was enrolled. Base acreage enrolled in the program includes 499,079 acres of com, 51,423 acres of wheat, 7,496 acres of barley, 28,065 of oats and 2,269 acres of grain sorghum. Producers who participate in the acreage limitation programs agree to reduce their plantings by at least 20 percent for feed grains or 107 thousand acres; 25 percent for wheat, or 12.9 thousand acres. Winter wheat producers also had the options of reducing their wheat acreage by an additional five or ten percent for diversion payments. The special wheat diversion will take an additional “Eight or nine wagons,” Dad had said, and here I must confess: I hate putting hay away but Dad likes buying it even less. It’s been sunny for three days straight that’s why we decided to mow it. When the hay was fit to bale, Mother Nature made plans to blow it. So the hay lays in the field at least until this rainfall stops. Noah may have had it bad, but he wasn’t harvesting crops. 2,274 acres out of wheat produc tion. This acreage must also be devoted to an acreage con servation reserve. Nationally, producers have signed contracts to place 186.3 million acres of upland cotton, extra long staple cotton, feed grain, rice and wheat crop acreage bases in the 1986 programs. The acreage to be taken out of production and devoted to the Acreage Conservation Reserve totals 43.9 million acres. The final ACR may be smaller, since total requirements are based on actual plantings. A final report of total acreage enrollment will be issued after June 1,1986. * 4
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers