818-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, September 10, 1988
STRASBURG (Lancaster)
When five out of seven children
choose farming for their liveli
hood, you know their parents’
atttilude must have had some influ
ence on them. Then, again, just
because a child does not choose
farming docs not mean he or she
rejects the values gained from
childhood.
Charles Good, the father of the
clan that hails from Strasburg,
admits that he’s prejudiced when it
comes to farming. He said, “I think
it’s the best way. Families are
closer.”
He attrbutes his children’s con
tinuing interest in farming to the
opportunities they saw in it.
“You’ve got to make it appealing,”
he said. “You must keep things
updated and not farm a rundown
farm where they see no opportuni
ties for a profit.”
What do his children say?
Don Good
Don, the oldest of the seven
children of Charles and Susie
Good, said, he, his wife Phoebe
and their four children rented a
farm for 14 years. He loved it and it
worked out well, but he felt “the
Lord nudging me toward fulltime
pastoring.”
Don added, “The value of the
land was beyond what I could see
paying off for the rest of my life.”
For many years he worked both
in farming and in pastoring for the
East Petersburg Mennonite
Church. “It was a struggle not to
respond to the wheel that squeaks
the loudest,” he admitted. And
“My father had a strong, but loving personality that con
veyed if you do not go into farming it’s the wrong way. "
farm work with its demanding
schedule and weather dependency
often kept him from pastoral care
and sermon preparation. He saw
less and less percentagewise of
people remaining in farming. And
Don felt less doors opening for him
in farming and more into
pastoring.
At that point, the daugher of the
landlord from whom they rented
was getting married and wanted to
move in the farmhouse. Don
believes, “If you really want to
stay on the farm, it’s best to own
it.”
In 1981, Don sold his cows, but
continued farming until 1984
when he sold his equipment. The
decision was made only after much
soul searching.
He affirms, “The farming values
that were passed on to me were
excellent. It’s an excellent place to
raise a family and there is work for
everyone. I miss that. Our four
children don’t have the things to do
that they did while growing up on
the farm.”
A few limes a year, he takes
some time off to help fill the silo or
assist in planting. “That nostalgic
is there, tugging at me. That conti
nual challenge that I could make it
go if I had another chance at farm
ing. But, it’s a false picture.
There’s a heavy debt load and long
hours.”
Still, his farming background
pops up in the illustrations he uses
to explain biblical principals to the
residents at the Landis Homes
Retirement Center in Lancaster.
For those contemplating
change, he believes it is essential
to process the decision with the
family. For him, the decision to
farm or not to farm is based solely
upon the principal that ‘'For awhile
The Charles Good Family Talks About Passing
On The Farming Tradition
Charles and Susie Good (center) of Strasburg have
passed on their love for farming to their children. Pictured
God led us into farming, and then
He led us away.”
Glen, the second son, said,
“Growing up I was always
intriqued by the joy of home life on
the farm. We didn’t go on vaca
tion, but we had good times at
home.”
Today Glen and his two sons,
Dana and Dean, farm 165 acres
and milk 115 cows. “It’s encourag
ing to see my children take an
interest in farming,” Glen said. He
believes that there is a future in
farming although it may be tough
er to prosper than it was during the
past generation.
The farm exudes an idealism, a romantic notion. The good
memories come flooding back and I forget about the pres
sures of things such as getting the hay in before the rain.
John Good
The third son of Charles, John
Good, attributes his interest in
farming to his father’s altitude:
“The farming soil was always dear
to my father. He passed on a beaut
iful attitude that I cherish. I’ve
enjoyed farming over the years and
I’ve never considered anything
else. He always taught that in rais
ing a family it was important to be
home with the family.”
Today, John’s nineteen year-old
son Steve helps his dad fulltime on
their 65-acre farm with 50 milking
cows and 60,000 broilers. “There’s
more emphasis on vacation and
pleasure now then when I was
growing up,” John said. “I don’t
remember staying away overnight
while I was growing up; we were
always back for milking. Today
we spend some nights away even
though we still need to work
around a schedule.”
Jane Hess
The eldest daughter, Jane, said
that she recalls in her childhood,
“Farming was always stressed as
the most important thing—not
education, reading, writing, and
arithmetic. My father had a strong,
but loving personality that con
veyed if you do not go into farming
it’s the wrong way.”
Glen Good
Jane added, “I really believe in
the family farm. We want our
children to feel land is important
and that they shouldn’t cover it
with houses.” Jane is married to
Dave Hess and their 21-year-old
son Dave now farms with them on
their 150-acre dairy farm in
Lancaster.
Ruth Todd
Ruth, the youngest daughter,
recalls many good times growing
up on the family farm. She said,
“Daddy always stressed working
together and that no one is finished
with his work until everyone is fin
ished.” Another aspect that she
thinks encouraged positive alti
tudes toward farming stems from
their mother never complaining
about the pressures of farm life. “I
remember her as a real helpmeet
who made sure Daddy’s desires
were carried out. She encouraged
we girls to see that the men always
had something to drink while they
were working. To this day, I think
it’s important for me to be at home
and see that the men have plenty to
drink when they’re working
outside.”
Although she remembers enjoy
ing the farm while growing up,
Ruth recalls that as an 18-years
old, the excitement of trying some
thing different lured her. “For 18
years I grew up with farming, I was
interested in seeing another side of
life. I struggled with the desire to
spend more time at a job requiring
mental labor rather than manual
labor. At that age I was too young
to appreciate the values of growing
up on the farm and I did not enjoy
gelling my hands dirty or in smell
ing the odors that farming some
times emits.”
She stressed, “Although my
parents certainly never over
worked me, I was attracted to
eight-hour-day work schedules.”
Love lured her back into farm
ing. She said, her husband Jay
Todd loves farming and it proved
contagious. “You can’t spend 20
years with someone and not love
what they love.” Today, she bales
straw and hay and loves it.
Hef'change in attitude happened
(left to right): Bob Good, Phoebe and John Good, Jane and
Dave Hess, Glen and Millie Good.
gradually, but when her children
brought their classmates home
from school, she said, “I began to
realize how many children who are
not exposed to seeds in the soil
misunderstand how we get what
we get”
Her daughters’ friends are
delighted and fascinated with help
ing make grape juice and picking
produce from the garden. Ruth
said, “I can’t imagine what it
“Farming was always stressed as the most important
thing—not education, reading, writing, and arithmetic.
would be like if my children had
not grown up on the farm. It teach
es them to structure their time, and
develops a work ethic that their
friends often lack.”
The Todds operate a beef and
grain farm 500-acres in East
Petersburg with Jay’s brother.
They serve other farmers by cus
tom combining.
Bob Good
Thirty-three-year-old Bob, the
youngest son, lives in Philadelphi
a. The city is a far cry from the
tranquil country scenes of his
Strasburg homestead.
It is with nostalgic thoughts that
Bob recalls growing up on the
, farm. “I enjoyed the lifestyle, the
sense of security and identity our
family had together. Sometimes
when I go back, I think this is what
life is supposed to be. The farm
exudes an idealism, a romantic
notion. The good memories come
flooding back and I forget about
the pressures of things such as get-
Do You Know?
... that the median family
income for 1986 was $29,460,
according to the U.S. Census
Bureau? Compared to 1985, this
was an increase of $1,725, or a 4.2
percent gain.
... that the Census Bureau also
reports that 28 percent of all 18- to
34-year olds live at home with
their parents? High rents, more
divorces and a tight job market
ting the hay in before the rain.”
He recalls staying on the farm
until 21 years of age. Then, he
found the day to day demands of
farming stifling and very con
trolled. He said, “It did not allow
lime to explore other opportunities
or other kinds of people and work
possibilities.”
Although he found working
with his hands enjoyable, he
longed for more education, some-
thing beyond farm life. He left to
attend college with no clear vision
of where he was going except to
follow his nose in studying history
something he always loved. Now,
he’s been teaching high school his
tory for seven years. Where did he
get his interest in history? He
answers, “My dad was always rich
in oral history.”
Bob said, “I think I could have
been a very good farmer and
enjoyed that life, but I felt like I
had to break free. It was not easy to
leave. Life requires a vital faith, a
life that takes risks. People who
want to pursue what’s best for
them must be willing to take
risks.”
Regardless of where people
live, Bob believes they need an
environment where they are free to
pursue what best suits them.
“Some are ideally suited to be far
mers; others to different occupa
tions. It’s important for parents to
allow that option.”
were cited as contributing factors.
... that homeownership rates
are dropping? 63.8 percent of all
households owned their own home
in 1986, down from 66 percent in
1980. Rising housing costs and the
fact that young people are waiting
longer before buying their first
home are partially responsible for
the decline.