AlO-Lancaster Fanning, Saturday, Jjmuacy 20, ,1996. An Open Letter To Farm Fathers You’ve worked hard to make a living for your family from the dairy. No one knows all you have sacrificed to make a go of it. The responsibility, though shared with others, has been pri marily yours. And it is difficult to let go, after all, the responsi bility has held you as much as you have held it. When your children are in their early twenties, it is time to let more of that responsibility pass. By the age of 30, your chil dren should be brought in as business partners. As a partner in the business, your child can benefit from your knowledge, yet be able to stand next to you as a partner. Assets can be transferred within that partnership and the process of turning the farm over becomes less of a problem. Now maybe this is where some of you are getting your jaw set, back up and thinking that those kids are, or were, too young in their twenties to bring into partnership. Why, you weren’t even sure if they were going to stay with the farm. That’s true and that’s the reason that you make provisions in a formal agreement to buy out the other. “But they will make mistakes and that means money that we can’t afford to lose.” You are right. They will make mistakes, why should they be any different than you? You will probably survive the mistakes, but if you don’t allow them to make deci sions and reap the consequences, then they will never learn, nor will they likely stay on the farm. Fathers, in my time as an Extension agent, I’ve seen a prob lem repeated frequently. Children were treated as nothing more than glorified hired help even as old or older than age 40. Some of those children stuck with you on the promise of inheriting the faim. Thanks, but that’s a bum deal. That arrangement does not build for the future. That arrange ment straps the next generation and makes transfer of the farm more difficult. That arrangement almost guarantees that they will be the last generation on the farm. Fathers, if your children are teenagers or older, I urge you to show them this letter, and start an honest discussion about their interest in the farm. Interest in the farm can be built up, or it can be destroyed you hold much of that opportunity. And Fathers, thank you for the sacrifices you made! Phil Durst, Extension Agent, Columbia, Montour, Northumberland, Snyder and Union Counties Bcaver/Lawrence Holstein annual meeting, 11:30 a.m. Bradford County annual meeting, Bonanza Stcakhousc, Wysox. noon. Maple Production School Video Conference, Bradford County Extension office, Towanda, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Alternative Income Conference, Church Hill Elementary School, 8:30 a.m.-2:15 p.m. Holstein Club annual meeting. Bonanza Restaurant, Wysox, pringu Dairy MAP Management For Suc cess, Schuylkill County Ag Center, Pottsville, 9:30 a.m.-3 p.m., also Jan. 29. Delaware County Coop. Extension Open House, Smedley Park, Springfield, PA, 3:30p.m.-6:30 p.m. PA Crop Management Assn, meet ing Penn Stale’s Scanticon Conference Center. 9:30 a.m. OPINION *Am c J* 1 ? ■■ ♦ Farm Calendar ❖ Lehigh Valley Horse Council meeting, Whithall Mall Com- Kauffman Community Center. 9:30 a.m. Berks County Crops Day, Berks County Ag Center, 9:30 a.m. Penn State Fruit School, Farm and Home Center, Lancaster, 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Dairy MAP-Trinity United Methodist Church, Elizabeth ville, also Feb. 1. Editor, The Blizzard of ’96 destroyed the myth, “We don’t need fanners, we get our food from supermarkets," During the storm, farmers were milking cows twice per day and caring for their animals so there would be plenty of food available To Apply For Farm Safety Grants The Farm Safety and Occupa tional Health Advisory Board has approved final guidelines for a statewide farm safety grant program. Direct grants and matching grants up to s2,sooare available to farm organizations, volunteer fire companies, etc. for farm safety, occupational health and emergen cy response programs. The grant program is designed to reduce farm accidents and health problems and improve farm rescue response procedures through safety education. Grants will be awarded annually to organizations based on the scope of the project and the num ber of people it benefits, the value of the project to the agricultural community and those who work directly with farm accident victims and the impact upon rural youth and farmers. For more information about the grant program call 717-787-4843 (Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture). To Do Preventative Maintenance Winter is a good lime to perform routine service on farm machinery and make those repairs you may have been putting off. Regular pre ventative maintenance keeps machinery operating safely at or near its full potential. Poor functioning machinery may start a chain of events leading to personal injury. If you are work ing and a mechanical problem occurs, it is tempting to try to fix it with as little interruption as possi ble, for example, without turning the power off or moving the equip- -4U ' •> 4 Farm and Home Foundation annu- Lehigh/Northampton County Crops Day, call extension office. Soil Fertility School, Lebanon Valley Ag Center. ♦ Farm Forum ❖ when roads were reopened. It often takes a shortage to appreciate our abundance. No bread, no milk, empty shelves that’s what we need to remind consumers about the Blizzard of ’96. ajn.-. p.m. (Turn to Pago A3l) Karl Hellerick Center Valley, Pa. ment to a safe location for repairs. Regular preventative mainte nance help* you to spot potential problems, such as weak chains and belts, worn gears, leaky hoses, dull blades, loose nuts and bolts, cracked or broken guards, before they happen. So invest a little time in servic ing your machinery now, and in the spring, you will be glad you did. To Vote in Sheep Referendum The United States Department of Agriculture will conduct a nationwide sheep referendum on Feb. 6, according to Chester Hugh es, extension livestock agent. The purpose of the referendum is to determine whether sheep pro ducers, sheep feeders and impor ters of sheep and sheep products approve the sheep and wool prom otion, research, education and information order. If the order is approved, assess ments would be collected on domestic and imported sheep and sheep products. Registration and voting will take place at your county coopera- BY I""!"LsEI ©SIBILS A FACE LIKE FLINT January 21, 1996 A FACE UKE FUNT January 21, 1996 Background Scripture: Isaiah 30:1-11 Devotional Reading: Hebrews 12:1-11 Harry Emerson Fosdick, late minister of Riverside Church in New York, tells of a Midwestern university that some decades ago unveiled a tablet to one of its alumni. This man had been active in many undergraduate activities, but he had never excelled in any. For four years he had gone out for football, but rose no higher than the scrubs. Scholastically, his average was a “B”. When World War I broke out this young man served in the medical corps and finally was killed trying to aid a wounded soldier. Posthumously the French conferred upon him the Croix de Guerre. Impressed by this recognition of a very average alumnus, his alma mater erected a tablet with this inscription: “He played four years on the scrubs he never quit” FAITH AND TRUST That story has always been an inspiration to me. Those I admire most are often not those most divinely gifted, but those who per severe in using whatever gifts they have. Life is sometimes a lot like football. We are often confronted with challenges for which we are meagerly equipped and every thing turns on whether we perse vere or give up. Perseverance is sometimes likened- to stubborn ness, but I think it really is the pro duct of faith. And faith, I believe, is largely the degree to which we trust in God. I have been in situa tions —as I’m sure you have—in which, if I had had only myself to rely on, I could not have seen them through. I have “hung in there,” not because I was confi dent of myself but because I found that God was die only support I could truly trust In Isaiah SO, God asks, “Is my hand shortened that it cannot live extension office on Feb. 6. Absentee ballots will be avail able through Jan. 26. A request for an absentee ballot must be made in writing to your county cooperative extension office. Absentee ballots must be received in county offices by close of business Feb. 2. All producers, feeders and importers who certify that they were engaged in sheep production, sheep feeding or importation of sheep or sheep products between Jan. 1,1994 and Dec. 31,1994 will be eligible to vote. This includes 4-H and FFA members who raised sheep during this period. The order may be approved by either a simple majority of those voting or by voters who account for'two-thirds of the number of sheep represented by those voting. The initial domestic assessment rate would be one cent per pound on live sheep sold and two cents per pound on greasy wool sold. Plan to vote and have your voice heard. Feather Prof.'s Footnote: "A leader maintains proper perspec tive and surveys the big picture." redeem? Or nave I no power to deliver?” The bedrock Of life is trust that God has both the will and the power to save us, if not from our peril, at least in the midst of it In whatever circumstance I find myself, the most important question I need to ask and answer is whether or not I believe God is more powerful than my danger or challenge. “Behold,” says God, “by my rebuke I dry up the sea, I make the riven a desert... I clothe the heavens with blackness, and make sackcloth their covering” (50:2b, 3). Is such a God too weak or restricted to help me in my distress? Sfl THIRD SERVANT SONG The prophet returns to the Ser vant theme and 50:4-11 is regarded as the third Servant Song. "The Lord has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain with a word him that is weary” (50:4a). Once again we need to ask, who is the Servant here? Mostly, Isaiah sees the Servant as the whole nation of Israel, but sometimes, as in this passage, he seems to be speaking also of him self. God has called him to teach the people of Israel to trust in the Lord and the people of Israel, in turn, are to teach all the nations.' That is the plan, but the results have been disheartening. Yet, despite the unresponsiveness of Israel, the Servant has persevered: “I gave my back to die smiters, and my cheeks to those who pulled out the beard; I hid not my face from shame and spitting” (50:6). Not because he is brave or self-confident, but because he trusts in God: “For the Lord God helps me; therefore I have not been confounded; therefore I have set my face like a flint, and I know I shall not be put to shame.” That’s what faith is: trusting in God and setting one’s face like a flint! Lancaster Farming Established 1955 Published Every Saturday Ephrata Review Building lE. Main St Ephrata, PA 17522 Lancaster Farming. Inc. AStohvnan Entwprtso ' Robert a Campbell Qcneral Manager Everett A Nawowangar Managing Edbor Copyright I$S6 by Lmncut* Forming
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