A24-Lancaster Fanning, Saturday, April 7,1990
ANDY ANDREWS
Lancaster Farming Staff
SMITHSBURG, Md. At
one time, Eva Martin resolved to
never marry a farmer.
But about 30 years ago, Eva
moved to Washington County,
Maryland with her husband. Mar
lin a farmer.
She has not regretted the deci
sion, as so many others sometimes
do because of the long, hard hours
that go into running a dairy farm.
But through the years, the farm
operation and the work the Martins
have been able to do for the dairy
industry have drawn them closer
together.
225-acre farm
The Martins operate a 225-acre
dairy farm, purchased by Marlin’s
father in 1955, a few miles from
Smilhsburg. They grow com,
alfalfa, barley, and wheat. In addi
tion, the Martins raise 120 head of
Holsteins and 400 hogs.
The dairy operation is run by
sons Kenlin, 25, and Kevin, 20.
Eva is active in crafts and Marlin is
president of the Maryland Holstein
Association.
Their daughter, Kaylena, 23, a
recent graduate of Messiah Col
lege, helps her mother with a small
local bookkeeping and tax prepa
ration business.
In the past. Marlin had little help
in running the huge dairy and hog
farm. But since his sons have
grown, he’s spent more time with
the association. Eva has spent a
great deal of time making crafts
and exhibiting her crafts at state
and local dairy shows.
Breeding operation
In February 1989, Kenlin and
Kevin purchased Spectacular Val
iant Mary/E.T. for $30,000, and
embryos were collected. From the
resulting pregnancies, one ET calf
will be sold at the Maryland Blue
Ribbon Sale on Friday, April 13 in
Timonium, Maryland. “Mary”
had a 365-day lactation report of
34,000 pounds of milk, 1,100
pounds of butterfat, and 1,130
pounds of protein.
According to Marlin, sales of
the remaining calves are yet to be
determined.
Eva was raised on a farm close
to Smithsburg. In 1956, her faptily
moved to Lancaster, Pennsylvania,
“because I had a deaf sister. When
she graduated from the Maryland
State School for the Deaf, we
moved to Lancaster. My parents
helped start the First Mennonite
School for the Deaf.”
The school was renamed the
First Deaf Mennonite Church,
located on the Old Philadelphia
Pike in Smoketown.
Lived on farm
“Until I was 13 we lived on the
farm,” she said. Their family ran a
farm on Route 30 near Lancaster.
Her father was a salesman for a
feed company. They returned to
Smithsburg on weekends and
that’s how she met Marlin.
HARRISBURG (Dauphin Co.)
The Senate Agriculture and
Rural Affairs Committee has
approved legislation that would
protect farmers’ rights to operate
produce stands and to safeguard
state residents against dangerous
dogs, according to Senator
Edward Helfrick (R-27), commit
tee chairman.
Helfrick said Senate Bill 986
would amend the Right to Farm
Dairy Farming Brings Them Closer Together
,S pun ir Valiant jry/E.T. In February 1989. And after
producing 34,000 pounds of milk, 1,100 pounds of butterfat, and 1,150 pounds of pro
tein In 365 days, embryos were collected. From the resulting pregnancies, one ET calf
will be sold at the Maryland Blue Ribbon Sale at Tlmonium, Maryland on Friday, April
13. Sales of the remaining calves will be determined at a later date. Left to right: Kevin,
Kenlin, Eva, and Marlin Martin. Photo by Andy Andrews.
“I’ve done various things.’
said Marlin. “I carried mail. Then
I was a manager of a supermarket,
and, about 25 years ago, we started
dairying and have been since.”
For 11 years, Marlin has been
active with the Maryland Holstein
Assocation at the county and state
level. The association has about
800 members in Maryland to
promote the Holstein breed to
industry and, especially, youth.
“With farming being what it is,
it’s getting harder and harder to get
young people interested,” he said.
“So the Holstein Association sup
ports our young people through
4-H and in all the shows.”
‘Grow Into’ business
Marlin is happy that his sons
have taken up most of the work on
the farm, and he recognizes how
important it is to allow youth to
“grow into” the farm business.
Eva said, “There’s just no way
they can do it without us letting
them take what we had, because
there’s just no farms around here
for sale.” As in many counties
being taken by development, many
are being priced too high to farm.
“It’s been rewarding to see our
children follow our footsteps,”
said Marlin.
The Martins spend a great deal
of time working for the association
and attend many functions in diffe
rent counties, including banquets
and shows.
(In addition to her other activi
ties, Eva is one of Lancaster Farm
ing’s Maryland correspondents.)
Farmers Have Right To Operate Produce Stands
Law to enable farmers to operate
roadside stands to sell their pro
ducts without fear of
repercussions.
“Fanners should be able to sell
fruits and vegetables directly,
without fear of nuisance suits or
zoning ordinances,” said Helfrick.
The senator added an ammend
ment to the bill that would allow
farmers to sell up to SO percent
off-farm commodities under spe
The Martins operate a 225-acre dairy farm, purchased by
Marlin’s father in 1955, a few miles from Smithsburg, Mary
land. Left to right: Eva; Marlin; Kevin; Kenlln; and Kenlin’s
wife, Mary.
Eva displays some of her crafts. Her specialty Is quilting and pillow making with a
special Holstein design. Her work realistically depicts the “look” of a Holstein.
cial conditions, including drought,
flood, and vandalism.
Helfrick said that two other
bills concerning dogs were also
released from his committee.
House Bill 820 would enable
anyone attacked by a dog to file a
complaint with the local district
justice. If the dog is deemed
dangerous, the owner must regis
ter the animal with the Bureau of
Dog Law Enforcement, pay a fee.
dangerous dogs to children who
confine the dog, post a warning
sign, and maintain liability insur
ancle on the animal. Violation of
the law would result in a penalty
to the owner or confiscation of the
animal.
The senator added an amend
ment to protect children from vi
cious dogs by requiring the state to
adopt the “Ugh Dog" symbol as
the standard symbol to identify
Results of efforts
‘ *'You work hard and you see the
results of your efforts,” he said.
“If you’re willing to put that extra
effort in, you can see the results.
“The difference between an
average farmer and a good fanner
is the cow that milks 70 pounds
and the cow that milks 100 pounds.
‘ ‘But farmers, even though they
have a lot of obstacles, are their
own boss,” he said.
In her spate time, Eva is a craft
maker her specialty is quilting
and pillow making with a special
Holstein design. Her work is spe
cial in that it realistically depicts
the ‘ ‘look’ ’ of a Holstein, with rea
listic features, as contrasted to the
cartoon-like impressions some
times found on commercial work.
Other crafts
She also designs decorative
clocks and other crafts with the
Holstein impression.
“She can go to a ball game and
quilt while everyone else is watch
ing a game,’’ said Marlin, with a
laugh.
‘ ‘lt’s a hobby because it’s some
thing I do not have a lot of time to
get done here at home but I can
take with me wherever I go,” Eva
said.
The only regret Eva has in not
having the time away from farm
chores and other responsibilities to
create more crafts.
Would still farm
Given another chance, they
would still farm.
“There’d be some things we’d
do differently,” said Marlin.
“There’s be some mistakes that
we made that we’d try to avoid, but
I guess we’d make some other ones
to take their place.”
“Most of everything in life
we’ve done together,” said Eva.
“What we enjoy most is probably
being able to work together. That
has been an asset to our marriage.’ ’
HULK.
ITS FITNESS
YOU CAN HUNK.
are too young to read posted signs.
The symbol was developed by
Animal-Vues, a Danville-based
non-profit educational
organization.
House Bill 159 would increase
the penalties for taunting or tortur
ing law enforcement dogs and
prohibit the denial of public
accommodations, such as theaters
or hotels, to anyone working with
a police dog.