Bfr-lififtstir f arming,' Sa(Urday/ Juty 2/ 4988 • “It's a good life,” the Heagys agree when talking about farming. David and his wife June are flanked by children Janet, 10; Allen, 17; (front, from left) Wayne, 13; and Mar lin, 15. Heagy Family Raises The Rafters BY LOU ANN GOOD LEBANON - You’ve heard of neighborhood bam raisings, but in Lebanon County there’s a new twist to the old tradition. There, David and June Heagy and their four children are having a family bam raising. True, it’s a bit slower when it’s only your family raising the raf ters, but talk to anyone of the Heagy family and their enthusiasm has not waned since October when they began tearing down and trans porting a neighboring bam to their farm. “It’s the variety that keeps it interesting,” seventccn-ycar-old Allen explained. “In the begin ning, we laid the block; we were glad when we could start laying the floor. Then we got tired of that, and were glad when we could put the partitions up.” Of course, the Heagys can’t stop doing their daily fanning chores while concentrating on erecting the bam. They have both pig and dairy operations plus 225-acres of hay, com, barley, soybeans, wheat and rye. It took the Heagys two months to tear down the bam that they had purchased for $l,OOO. They ran into some difficulties when they drilled into a rock vein while lay ing the foundation at the new site. “Dynamite was by far the biggest cost of building it,” Heagy said. It Heights don't deter these guys. In fact, nailing lathe on the roof was orte of their favorite jobs of fifteen- year-old Marlin who is cllmbtrig the ladder. took ten days of drilling to prepare the site. Son Allan became the official expert at block laying and concret ing the foundation, which will be used to expand their pig operation. Later Marlin, 15. and Wayne, 13, spearheaded their efforts into nail ing lathe on the roof. Both also enjoy using the front-end loader to transport back fill. The bam rais ing isn’t entirely a male project. Ten-year-old Janet plays a vital role by keeping the workers sup plied with drink. Not everything happens on site. The boys were able to combine their bam building with some ag shop projects. They cut pipe and welded gates during class time. When the barn, which is 45x98-feet, is finished, the Heagys estimate it will be worth $30,000. In additional to the monetary sav ings, the Heagys talk of the satis faction they derive from “knowing we did it.” Next school term, Allan is switching to vocational technolo gy with a concentration on diesel mechanics. It’s a planned move to make the Heagy’s farm operation a continuing success. Said Dad Heagy, “I know how to do every thing. 1 do my own machinery repair, electrical, plumbing and vet work.” He wants his sons to do the same. Trade school honed his skills Beside being a seasonal salesman for Pioneer seed com, David enjoys side interests like carpentry and mechanics. The Heagys make their own feed, do their own butch ering and run their own saw mill. Each son vies for the favorite spot of running field machinery. June said, “Sometimes it gives a problem because they all want to do it.” Wayne interjected, “But mom and dad decide who gets to do it and we do what we are told.” Apart from the preferred field work, each family member has their own farming specialties. “Everything seems to work out; we complement each other,” June said. “The children do not like to milk, but my husband and I do.” All three teenagers are avowed farming enthusiasts and intend on making a career in farming. The long hours and hard work don’t bother them.” On ocassion, they get up at 1 o’clock in the morning to plant or harvest crops. Said Marlin, “I like working in (he fields at night and watching fire come out of the muffler.” They have seven tractors that enable four drivers to keep running and allow for breakdowns. “We have a couple of John Deere trac tors,” Allan said, “and you don’t need to know about the rest.” At that remark his brothers made a few snide remarks about tractor breakdowns. Laughing about their frustrations, they find helps allevi ate the trauma of broken machin ery “when the stuff has got to be planted.” With the declining farm eco nomy and his three sons deter mined to continue farming, is David skeptical of the future? “No,” he maintains. “1 have no problem keeping them all busy.” Dave and his three sons arc plan ning for the future. They talk of buying, fixing and reselling machinery. They plan to expand their custom harvesting business. “It’s the variety that’s the sec ret,” David revealed. “It keeps farming interesting and helps you be self-sufficcnt. It’s a good life— that’s why they like it.” See your nearest NEW HOLLAND Dealer for Dependable Equipment and Dependable Service: PENNSYLVANIA Annville, PA B H M Farm Equipment, Inc RD 1 717-867-2211 Beavertown, PA B&R Farm Equipment, Inc RD 1, Box 217 A 717-658-7024 Belleville, PA Ivan J Zook Farm Equipment Belleville, Pa 717-935-2948 Canton, PA Hess Farm Equipment 717-673-5143 Carlisle, PA Paul Shovers, Inc 35 East Willow Street 717-243-2686 Chambersburg, PA Clugston Implement, Inc RD 1 717-263-4103 Davldsburg, PA George N Gross, Inc R D 2, Dover, PA 717-292-1673 Elizabethtown, PA Messick Farm - Equipment, Inc Rt 283 - Rheem's Exit 717-367-1319 Gettysburg, PA Yinglmg Implements. Inc 3291 Taney town Rd 717-359-4848 Greencastle, PA Meyers Implement’s Inc 400 N Antrim Way P O Box 97 717-597-2176 Halifax, PA Sweigard-Bros R D 3, Box 13 717-896-3414 Hamburg, PA ShaiHesville Farm Service RD 1, Box 1392 215-488-1025 Hanover, PA Sheets Brothers, Inc 1061 Carlisle St Hanover, PA 17331 717-632-3660 Honey Brook, PA Dependable Motor Co East Mam Street 215-273 3131 215-273-3737 Honey Grove, PA Norman D Clark & Son. Inc Honey Grove, PA 717-734-3682 Hughesville, PA Farnsworth Farm Supplies, Inc 103 Cemetery Street 717-584-2106 Lebanon, PA Keller Bros Tractor Co RD 7, Box 405 717-949-6501 Loysville, PA Paul Shovers, Inc Loysville, PA 717-789-3117 Lynnport, PA Kermijt K Kistler, Inc Lynnport, PA 215-298-2011 Mahaffey, PA Hutton Farm Equipment RD 2 814-277-5504 New Holland, PA ABC Groff, Inc 110 South Railroad 717-354-4191 New Park, PA M&R Equipment Inc PO Box 16 717-993-2511 Oley, PA C J Wonsidler Bros RD 2 215-987 6257 Pitman, PA Schreffler Equipment Randy L Schreffler Pitman,- PA 717-648-1120 Quakertown, PA C J Wonsidler Bros RD 1 215-536-1935 Quarryville, PA C E Wiley & Son, Inc 101 South Lime Street 717-786-2895 Rlngtown, PA Rmgtown Farm Equipment Rmgtown, PA 717-889-3184 Tamaqua, PA Charles S Snyder, Inc R.D 3 717-386-5945 West Grove, PA S G Lewis & Son, Inc R D 2, Box 66 215-869-2214 MARYLAND Churchville, MD Walter G Coale, Inc 2849-53 Churchville Rd 301-734-7722 Frederick, MD Ceresville Ford New Holland, Inc Rt 26 East 301-662 4197 Outside MD, 800 331-9122 Hagerstown, MD Antietam Ford Tractor 301-791 1200 NEW JERSEY Washington, NJ Frank Rymon & Sons 201-689-1464 Woodslown, NJ Owen Supply Co Broad Street & East Avenue 609-769-0308
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