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AfO-Lancaiter Farming, Saturday, June 14, 1997
FFA Makes Many
Once again the time has come to celebrate national FFA week.
This year as a special project the National FFA Foundation has
undertaken the coordination of a special Partners for a Safer
Community. As a national pilot test of the program’s youth safety
educational materials, the group launched a two-day training of
six community teams from Georgia, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah,
Washington and Wisconsin.
This is a national collaborative effort to promote agricultural
youth safety and health through education, community develop
ment and youth leadership. To help accomplish this goal, Part
ners for a Safer Community compiled the instructional package
—including adult and student guides, sample educational resour
ces, a resource guide and a CD-ROM—for teaching youth safety
to secondary and elementary school students.
For the next four months, participants will conduct local safety
programs and will provide evaluation feedback. Program staff
will use the pilot test results to strengthen the materials for train
ing workshops in the fall of 1997 and for national distribution of
the package of 4,000 communities by the end of 1998.
This is just another way FFA brings good things to our youth
and our communities. Like everything else, they can’t do it alone.
The list of sponsors for this project is long and covers many areas
of agriculture and education. But it just gives us one more good
reason to say thank you to all the many youth and adults in FFA
that contribute to the well-being of our country.
Editor:
It’s hard to believe, but it’s time
now for me to give up my title as
Crawford County Dairy Princess.
It has been a wonderful year for
me and I hope that the next girl to
carry this title will have as great of
a year as 1 did.
I have had so many wonderful
experiences this year as dairy
princess. I have met and worked
with a lot of really great people. It
has been a very busy, and some
times exhausting, year though. I
have spent my reign promoting
the dairy industry for dairy far
mers in Crawford County and
across all of Pennsylvania. I have
done my best to make this a suc
cessful year for dairy farmers by
doing more than 340 promotions
in 340 days, and I still have more
promotions scheduled on both the
county and state level!
I will consider my reign this
year a success if I was able to
communicate to the public the
importance of agriculture, and
especially the dairy industry, in
Pennsylvania. Dairy farmers are
having a difficult time making a
living right now because milk
prices are low. We all need to sup
port the dairy farmers of Pennsyl
vania by buying and consuming
real dairy products. If we work
together to put dairy products on
the table at every meal milk prices
will rise, and we will have a
healthier America.
The judges this year will have a
hard job ahead of them as they
have to pick a new dairy princess
and alternate from the five girls
running in Crawford County this
year. I would like to wish all the
girls competing at this year’s
Crawford County Dairy Princess
Pageant good luck. Crawford
OPINION
Contributions
County will be blessed with a
great dairy princess, alternate, and
dairy maids this year.
Please come out and support the
contestants on June 21 for the
annual Dairy Princess Pageant.
The contest will be held at the
Cochrantown Community Church
on Route 285 outside of Cochran
town at 8:00 p.m. There is $1.50
admission for those more thap 12
years old with an all-you-can-eat
ice cream social following. Hope
to see you there!
S;ilm'(la\, June 14
Lancaster Safe Kids-Farm Safety
Day Camp, Solanco Fair
grounds, 8 a.m.-3 p.m.
Mercer County Farm & Home
Safety Day, Mercer Extension
Center, 8 a.m.-4:30 pjn.
Maryland Wool Pool, Harrington,
Del., 8 a.m.-noon.
Strawberry Festival, Allegheny
Church, Alleghenyville, 4
p.m.-8 p.m.
Lawn care meeting, York Exten
sion, 10 a.m.
East Central Pa. 2-Cylinder Club
Deere Tractor and Equipment
Collectors’ Show, Oley Fair
grounds, thru June IS.
Beav er-Lawrcncc Dairy Princess
Pageant, Big Knob Grange,
New Brighton, 8 p.m.
Lancaster County Dairy Princess
Pageant, Farm and Home Cen-
To Teach Safety
Dr. Timothy Elkner, Lancaster
County extension horticultural
agent, reminds us that safety train
ing is most effective when done in
small amounts.
Rather than long, drawn-out
monthly safety meetings, consider
weekly, short sessions to keep
your employees updated on safety
concerns. Weekly meetings allow
you to address concerns that are
related to what employees will be
doing that week.
Since your employees could
then practice some of the safety
procedures discussed, they are
more likely to remember them and
develop them as habits.
A good safety program needs
leadership from a manager or farm
owner. It is often best if the infor
mation comes from the employees
themselves. This helps the
employees to be thinking about
safety on their own.
Thus, it is important to take
some time and review safety at
your operation every week.
Remember, family members
working on the farm are employ
ees and also need weekly safety
instruction.
To Involve
Employees In
Safety Education
Your safety program should
have as much employee participa
tion as possible, according to Dr.
Merideth Weiderspahn
Crawford County
Dairy Princess
Pennsylvania Ist
Alternate Dairy Princess
ter, Lancaster, 7 p.m.
Clearfield County Dairy Princess
Quali F id
Beginners-Open Novice Com
bined Test & Dressage, Thorn
croft Equestrian Center,
Penn State, thru June 18.
National Ayrshire Breeders Asso
ciation, Willow Valley Restort,
thru June 21.
Tioga County Dairy Princess
Pageant, Mainesburg Com
munity Center, Mainesburg,
7:30 p.m.
(Turn to Pag* A3O)
Timothy Elkner, Lancaster County
extension horticultural agent.
This could include having an
employee actually make a presen
tation. Employees may be more
convincing to other workers since
they are peers. In addition, the per
son # who made the presentation
probably learned a lot themselves
as they prepared for their talk.
Employees who are in line to
make future presentations could be
looking for areas in the operation
where accidents are likely to occur
or where safety precautions could
be improved. Having employees
identify and talk about safety
issues should make them moth
aware of potential hazards.
For family members working on
the farm, consider dedicating one
meal a week where you or a family
member discuss a safety topic.
To Monitor
Aphids On Tobacco
Robert Anderson, Lancaster
County extension agronomy
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HAVE YOU READ THE
RULES?
June 15, 1997
Background Scrpture:
2 Timothy 2:1-13
Devotional Reading:
2 Timothy 2:14-26
As a boy, I always enjoyed
board games: “Go to die Head of
the Class.” “Clue,” “Chinese
Checkers” and “Monopoly," to
name just a few. But, mucli as I
enjoyed playing the games, I
didn’t like having to read all the
rules that went with them. Of
course, you’ve got to know the
rules to play the game. As 2
Timothy puts it, “An athlete is not
crowned unless he competes
according to the rules” (2:5).
It’s like that with life, too. It is
very important that we familiarize
ourselves with the rules of life.
How often I used to complain that
something or other that I exper
ienced was “not fair!” One day,
however, someone stopped me in
mid-complaint and asked, “Where
did you get the idea that life has to
be fair?”
NOT FAIR!
Actually, if I had read the rules,
I would have known that fairness
is not one of the promises God
gives us along with the gift of life.
Where is that written? Many
places, but especially in the Bible.
Granted, I don’t recall any passage
in which it is specificially stated,
“Life is not fair!” But you can’t
read very far in the scriptures
without getting that message.
Actually, that’s what the cross of
Christ is all about life’s injus
tice. If life is to be fair, it is not
something that we will find along
the way, but something that we
ourselves must bring into being.
Another one of the rules that is
often overlooked by Christians is
that some suffering is to be
expected for all humans and
Christians are not exempt From
Genesis to Revelation, die Bible
clearly states that suffering is part
of the human condition. Christian
ity is not about avoiding suffering,
but in dealing with it victoriously.
The writer of 2 Timothy says:
‘Take your share of suffering as a
good soldier of Christ Jesus”
(2:3). The implication here is that
Christians might even have to suf
fer more than others. As hardship
agent, reminds us that in most
years aphids usually start to appear
on tobacco in mid to late June with
the major numbers appearing
about the fourth of July.
Aphids can build up very rapid
ly under ideal weather
Heavy infestations of aphids ifl
decrease both yield and quality or
the tobacco crop.
To monitor aphids on tobacco,
begin looking for them in late June
or very early July. When you find
20 percent of the plants with
aphids, it is time to begin spraying.
Most labeled products do an
excellent job of controlling aphids
when spraying starts before a large
build up occurs and continues as
needed throughout the growing
season. When using any pesticide,
read the label and always follow
the directions for its use and all
safety precautions.
Feather Prof’s Footnote: "The
key to happiness is having
The key to success is
dreams come true." „ ”
goes with soldiering, so it goes
with Christian disciplineship. As
an apostle for Jesus Christ, Paul
experienced more, not less suffer
ing. It is for the gospel, he writes,
“for which I am suffering and
wearing fetters like a criminal”
(2:9).
WORST-CASE SCENARIO
What we need to keep in per
spective here is that suffering is
not the worst thing that can befall
us. Being defeated by suffering is
the worst thing. Permitting suffer
ing to dissipate or ruin our faith is
our greatest danger. Failing to
look to Christ in our hour of suf
fering is the most crucial mistake
we can make.
For our strength is not in hiding
behind the door when the suffer
ing is passed out, but in experietfj
ing the grace of God. “You theST
my son, be strong in the grace that
is Christ Jesus” (2:1). That grace
that undeserved love from God
is stronger than any suffering
we can endure. Perhaps quoting
from an ancient hymn, the writer
of 2 Timothy, reminds us:
If we have died with him, we
shall also live with him.
If we endure, we shall also
reign with him.
As Christ was victorious over
all suffering, so can we experience
that same kind of victory. We may
be fettered actually or figura
tively “But the word of God is
not fettered”! (2:9). No prison, no
restraints, no limitations can fetter
the gospel of Christ or us!
We’re like the little boy whoat
teacher became exasperate
because he was always standing
up when he was supposed to be
sitting. Pushing him down in his
seat, she said, “Now stay there!”
To which he replied: “Outside I
may be sitting down, but inside
I’m still standing!”
And that’s in the rules, too!
(The Althouses will walk in the
footsteps of Paul and John of
Revelation, leading a tour to Turk
ey next Oct. 17-Nov. 2. For infor
mation: "Turkish Delight," 4412
Shenandoah Ave., Dallas, TX
752051(214) 521-2522.)
Lancaster Farming
Established 1955 1
Published Every Saturday
Ephrata Review Building
IE. Main St
Ephrata, PA 17522
-by-
Lancaster Farming, Inc.
A Steinman Enterprise
Robert G. CampMl Omani Manager
Everett R. Newewenger managing Editor
Cfyritl* 1997 by LmmouHr Farming