A36-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, December 10, 1994 VERNON ACHENBACH JR. Lancaster Fanning Staff FOMBELL (Lawrence Co.) Tim Sturgeon is the head of a dairy farm family in Fombell that depends entirely on selling milk and Holstein cattle. The farm from which the family makes its living has been in their family since about 1870. It is located about 50 miles from Pitts burgh and occupies about 180 acresof hilly, clay-type soil. About 150 additional acres are rented. The family members are Tim and his wife Kathy, and their three sons Blane, 12, Wade, 18, and Thad, 21, a senior at Penn State University, and also a 1994 nation al Holstein Association distin guished junior member. The Sturgeons milk about 60 Holsteins, mostly registered, with some grade recipient cows used because they do a lot of embryo work. When Tim was a student at Elwood City High School 30 years ago, there were 20 or so farm fami lies whose children attended school, he said. Today, the graduating classes have enlarged to more than 200, but at present there are only two full-time farm families with child ren in the school district. And the other farm family is a neighbor to the Sturgeons. The situation is similar in many areas. GET FRESH WITH US! 3iP • System includes Air Conditioner P»cfc»B» F»n Package Fan Air Balancers and IT Automatic intake Controller fEL ‘ BL •Energ'y efficient operation F,,m ' IB Air Conditiontr W •Optional corrosion free stainless .r . * •Easy operation and steel housing and hardware maintenance WBQm* jsszl, TUSCARORA ELECTRIC MANUFACTURING Co. f INC. Tunkhannock, PA 18657 Call 717-836-2101 Fax: 717-836-2102 FULL LINE <SSW STAINLESS STEEL CHIMNEYS -Deluxe Ram Cap 3 Storm Collar Firestop Attic Insulation Shield Chimney Sections Decorator -, Ceiling Support Black Stove Pipe STOVE s Stove Pipe Adapter Che* ( Oor I Price*' Mfg’s Distributor D.S. MACHINE SHOP Dealer Inquiries Invited Whereas the amount of milk needed to be sold in order to sup port a family has increased dramat ically over time, and with the num ber of mega-dairies competing with smaller farms, the stability of family dairy farms has decreased and many of those farms have disappeared. The pressure of survival has been increasing on the family farm operation, and is expected to remain. For these reasons, an education al outreach program was created within the state to help dairy farm families and managers of larger dairy operations. It is called the Dairy MAP (man agement and profitability) prog ram, and it is in its third year of being offered through a colabora tive effort between the Penn State University Cooperative Extension Service and the Pennsylvania dairy industry. Earlier this year, Tim Sturgeon attended a Dairy MAP workshop series in his area. Designed as a two-day work shop, the Dairy MAP program cost $lOO per farm which entitles two people to attend. Tim went alone. “If I had to it to do again, I would have had my wife go along too. I shouldn’t just say wife, we have (sons)... it is just as beneficial for them, if not more beneficial than for my wife an I,” Tim said. So, with ever-tightening cash DO YOU HAVE A DRAFT PROBLEM? Consider using a rigid type 316 stainless steel liner for your existing chimney. We use type 316 instead of type 304 for more acid resistance. We stock tees, ells and liners in 2 ft. and 4 ft. lengths. Adjustable Roof Flashing umney ist be closed living Jki 2388 Old Leacock Rd., GordonviUe, PA 17529 717-768-3853 Dairy MAP Is Family Matter ASM™ m flows, it may not seem like the best time to divert part of the milk check to pay for a seminar on how to stay in business. But Sturgeon said attending the workshop may have been the one thing he did recently that will give him a better chance at staying a full-time dairyman. “I guess the person who thinks he’s doing everything right, ought to stay home. (If that person does attend) he’s going to find out he’s not doing everything right,” Tim said. While a $lOO fee may seem steep. Sturgeon said that for him it was definitely money well spent. “The cost is irrelevant, from what we got out of it,” he said. “I do a better job. I do a lot better job of record keeping.” Sturgeon was doing pretty well farming before attending the work shop. He has had his cattle on test for at least 30 years. He raises his own com, hay, some soybeans, (quit raising small grains), and beds his cattle with wood shav ings, locally available and inexpensive. “We’re going to expand, and I wanted to learn about anything that has to do with expansion that we can learn. (Expanding a dairy operation) is a long-range planning process, not something you do right away. “The thing is, we all (the Stur geon family) get along really well, MIX. IT DOES A BODY GOOD. TOOL SALE Special 10% OFF and a free m For Anyone Buying $150.00 Or More : December 3rd Til Christmas Discount applies to Peeriess batteries, toys, games, wagons and all gifts. SPECIAL - Victoria Strainers $29.95 Hour*: (:30 AM -7:00 PM, Excapl Wad.. Thura. 1:30 AM • 4:00 PM, Sat. CM AM. 2:00 PM Bp*d*l Saturday Hour*: 4:30 am - 4 pm Daeambar ltd thru Chrlatmaa but I wanted to get along better.” According to Sturgeon, the workshops he attended were held in the style of an open meeting, “And we did a lot of talking among ourselves and it gave us a good idea of how others were doing, and everybody seemed really open with each other, and that was nice,” he said. But Tim said he got more than good conversation from the workshops. The Sturgeons now have a mis sion statement for their farm. There is a week between meet ings in the two-day workshop series. During that time, particip ants are given homework to do. Part of the homework for Tim Sturgeon was to develop a farm mission statement. “Our mission is to produce a quality dairy product and to mer chandise a tojp genetic animal, with an emphasis on honesty and respect, not only to others, but by others; to distinguish family val ues, work in harmony, and be accepted as a businessman, while portraying a Christian image and creating a standard accepted by the consumer. “We as a family wrote that,” Sturgeon said, explaining how they sat down and considered it, all of them, and worked it out. And that they keep it. Also, the family is closer and communicating better through weekly family meetings, which Sturgeon said started as a result of his attending Dairy MAP. There are many other changes that came about. As an example, Sturgeon said he keeps a notebook with him and he Direct from Factory to Our Door Saves You up to 40% on Tools Famous Name Brand Lufkin, Plumb Stanley, Irwin Disston, Wiss S.K. Exact and et< fide Blade Extra Special IS 0 / For Anyone Buying $250.00' BUY BELOW Dealers You Also Receive A FRE Flashlight or Paper 350-* Tires, >" Bed 41 Rack* alley Feed Carts - Express Wagons - Hardware Martin Senour Paint - Kendall Motor Oils 8N Vlntag* road, Chriatiana, PA 17500 We Have A Good Supply Of Farberware Cookware PER WA( MODEL 1300-* 13' Alt Him, M'iW Bad InlM w/—c>«sl64 K»ek»sl44 *«IU SUp U.M. Anjvhara la Tha U.«. (Kxcapt Modal 1900) • Ton Pay Shipping In Adraaci Or IN Will BUI. Hardware writes down how much milk is shipped, what the milk price is, somatic cell count and milk component production, and other information he needs. He said hav ing ready access to this informa tion when making decisions around the farm allow him to make better-based decisions. He said by keeping track of the daily milk weight slips, he can keep track of how much he is ship ping, especially during times of feed changes. Information from his notes is recorded on the home computer, although he doesn’t use the com puter often himself, except for searching for bulls. But his wife and sons can use the computer well. Tim said months after attending the workshop, he realized that he took home more information than he thought, including a better atti tude about how to get things done. “I guess I would have to say, (I learned) management techniques, and, more than anything, how to work with your help. “I’ve always tried to teach the help to have responsibility, even if it’s one little thing. “Our youngest boy, he takes care of (calves). That’s his job. But I think that’s one thing we talked about at the session even though I’m the elder person here, instead of being boss and saying, ‘You do that and this,’ give responsibilities, and make sure that if you are not around, someone can do it. “Wade, our middle boy... is bas ically in charge of (maintaining the quality of the total mixed ration),” (Turn to Pago AST) Is, cookware, tool Small MODEL 175- 10*175 Whaalt, 10**95' ■ad $82.00w/Kaafc.
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