Dairy Day Message
(Continued from Page A 22)
home, Snider welcomed Marty
Smith, Ron Kline, Glenn Gor
rell, and Jerry Spencer to the
stage. Each panelist brought a
unique viewpoint to light.
Although still operating a
small dairy, Marty Smith has
begun a contract heifer-raising
facility.
“Three years ago the milk
price was bad and we had a bad
crop year and we started looking
at other things. First I went to
work for other people. After
working for myself, I found I
didn’t like working for others, so
we looked into raising heifers,”
said Smith.
After careful planning and
discussion, their facility was
built in November 1998. In less
than four months, their facilities
were full.
“The banker we used to work
with said there was not a market
for this,” noted Smith. “We
proved them wrong.”
The Smiths charge on a per
head per-day basis. They also
take care of the necessities and
whatever the client wants. They
have also left options open for
the future.
“We take pride in what we
do,” noted Smith.
For Ron Kline, bringing two
sons into the business lead to a
Mahoning Outdoor Furnaces
Cut Your Heating Costs With Our
Outdoor, Furnace
Standard Model Burns Wood, Coal
or Wood by-products
Multi-Fuel Model Burns Wood,
Coal, Oil or Gas
Adapl|.lo any exiting system Installation & Accessories Available
A
I /C"\ The cropbuster loan is available to all qualified farmers in the Blue Ball National Bank
"MLhl market Rate effective on publication date and is subject to change or can be
■ withdrawn at any time without notice The maturity date of this loan is December 31,
We vs sprajed for bugs 000
CROP
BUSTE
LOAN
We at Blue Ball National Bank live in your communit and understand your
farming problems. We have no bureaucratic tape - the future is now for you to
take advantage of this loan.
The Cropbuster Loan' may be used for seed, lime fertilizer, herbicides and
pesticides and give you the opportunity to take advantage of seasonal
discounts.
To take advantage of the loan call Ken Overly in the Agn Sales/Service
Division at 1-800-346-3437 or 354-3513.
major herd expansion and the
building of new facilities.
“We studied this for two
years and visited lots of other fa
cilities before we built what we
have. We have left room for
more expansion if we choose to
do that in the future.”
Expanding the milking herd
still left the Klines with some di
lemmas. They are considering
whether to have their heifers
custom raised freeing additional
space for more milking cows or
to continue raising their own re
placements. Nutrient manage
ment requirements are also on
his mind. He is looking at a
system to manage the manure
flow.
Many factors went into the
decision to expand their herd.
Tm 55 years old,” noted
Kline. “I said, ‘l’ve got the farm,
now what do I do with it?’ This
is a way that I’ve got a retire
ment, my sons have equity and
they can build their dream, and
we all have more time for per
sonal things.”
Better debt management was
one of the driving reasons
behind Glenn Gorrell’s decision
to specialize in grazing with his
65-cow Holstein herd. After
moving to Bradford County
from Centre County in 1989, he
noted that what really grows
well in northeastern Pennsylva-
December 10th, 1999
Thru March 31st, 2000
BBBISB
BLUE BALL NATIONAL BANK
Member FDIC
nia is grass, so he decided to
graze his cattle intensively.
“Our herd health is excellent
and we can do a lot with just two
people. Our debt load was high
and we needed to get ahead.
This way our feed costs are
low,” explained Gorrell.
Although he supplements the
cow’s diet with corn silage and
hay, they get about half of their
dry matter from grass during
the grazing season.
“Wherever the cows can
walk, it’s there to graze,” said
Gorrell.
Jerry Spencer works at the
opposite end of the dairy spe
cialization business. As a custom
harvester, Spencer relies on
other farmers to make a living.
“We had a fire in 1993 and to
get back into the dairy business
was impossible, but I had my
equipment. I already had the
dairy and did some custom op
erations, so it was an easy deci
sion that custom harvesting
would be my niche,” said Spen
cer.
Keys to Spencer’s success is
keeping the farmers happy and
having adequate dealer support.
“All my farmers work to
gether,” said Spencer. “Some
times I don’t know where I’m
going next. The farmers have
that all worked out. I also have
to depend on my dealer support.
If I don’t have that, I couldn’t
do the job.”
Following the panel discus
sion, dairy day participants had
the opportunity to attend one of
four breakout sessions. Mark
Madden, Penn State extension
agronomist, lead a group of
farmers in a discussion on weed
control in corn in one session.
Another talk was focused on
seeking financial resources and
was piloted by Gary Snider.
Debbie Bryant, Susquehanna
County family living agent,
guided a group of people in a
session on retirement planning
and Lisa Holden, assistant pro
fessor with Penn State’s Depart
ment of Dairy and Animal
Science, led a seminar on em
ployees as an asset.
In Bryant’s session she re
minded the group that retire
ment planning is not the same as
estate planning.
“With an estate, you prepare
to pass on your assets after you
die. With retirement planning,
we’re thinking that we have a lot
of years of living. It’s how we’re
going to pay the bills between
the day we retire and the day we
die.”
She also encouraged everyone
to save as much as possible, and
to pay into social security.
“There’s no one who’s going to
take care of us if we don’t take
care of ourselves.” she noted.
“You should pay into social se
curity. If you don’t pay in,
you’re not going to get it when
you retire.”
mwmwm
For Installed \ \ \ \
STANDING SEAM ROOFING \ \ \ \
contact \ \ \ \
STRICKLER METAL \\ \ \
ROOFING \ \ \ \
717-865-3093 \\\\
or 610-488-9303 \ \ \ \
Specializing in double crimp standing seam
Available In
20 + prefinished Colors
Gaivalume - Galvanized - Tern - Etc.
FREE ESTIMATES
Work Approx. 60 Miles Radius of Lebanon, Pa.
RD #2 Box 350-A Annville, PA 17003
Call TOLL f&Z ______
\CB>oc>)'i\9~ss r ? r ? mimvjiU'B.iimiu**.!, —
I Please mail this coupon or tall TOLI FRfl (or FRH-DhTAII S f
So WHY HASSLE I iboul thc l)R1 TRIMMER/MOWfcR” including j
i prices specifications and factory Direct Sa\ mgs now in ctfecl
with trimmers i,,
. . I Name
you have to i
carry or with [ Addrcss
small-wheels 1 Cu >" Stale Z 'P ;
\ COUNTRY HOME PRODUCTS', Dept 3798 T |
i mOWerS ■ 1 Meigs Road, P O Box 2S, Vergennes, VT 05491 j
Th»
HARO
Way*!
c
m.
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, March 4, 2000-A27
In the session on employees
led by Lisa Holden, the impor
tance of treating employees as
an asset was at the forefront.
She highlighted the need for or
ganized recruitment, training,
and motivation of employees in
all situations. She also noted
that it is helpful to have job de
scriptions and standard opera
ting procedures for every
position and task.
“Training is an investment in
people,” she said. “In training
there is a definite process. First
you prepare them for what
they’re going to do, then show
them how to do it. Next, let them
do it and finally review the
steps. It’s all the little things that
count. A problem can start off
with something very small and it
can become a very large prob
lem. That’s where standard op
erating procedures come in.”
If employee motivation is an
area that needs improvement,
there are incentives and bonuses
that can be tied to performance.
“Incentives are an ongoing
thing,” said Holden, “like giving
the milkers a part of the extra
milk check dollars earned if the
somatic cell level is kept at an
acceptable level. A bonus is
something special. You need to
be creative.”
No matter how organized the
employer is, the people that you
attract can make or break your
operation.
(Turn to Page A2B)
about the Original
DR' TRIMMER!MOWER !
LF *
o