Joe Allen
Family: Joe Allen and wife, Alicia, have two children Laura Jo, age 20, and Garrett, age 14.
In Town: “After graduating from OSU, I was the Agricultural Education Instructor at Howe, Okla., for 12 years. I am now the loan officer and vice president of the Central National Bank in Heavener, Okla. I have been working for the bank for the last eight years. My wife, Alicia, has been in the Hodgen Public Schools for 10 years and is a middle school teacher and school counselor.”
In the Country: “My wife and I have lived in the Haw Creek Community for 18 years. We have two children, Laura Jo and Garrett. We own 175 acres and lease an additional 125. We run a commercial cattle herd with Brahman cross cows bred to Charolais bulls. The combination works well for us because the cow is high in milk production and heat tolerant. The Charolais bulls add muscle and bone structure while removing a lot of ear from the calves. We also have a SimAngus herd with 20 mommas and one Simmental bull. I try to rotate bulls every two to three years so I can keep replacement heifers. We sell our calves at the Le Flore County Livestock Auction in Wister, Okla., because we believe in doing all the business we can locally.
“We hay 90 acres two times a year with a goal of five bales per cow and sell excess hay. Alicia and the children have always helped with the hay baling production as well as with feeding the cattle. All of our land is mostly Bermuda mixed with Rye, Clover, Lespedeza and Cheat grass.
“Another part of my country life is raising registered Bluetick coonhounds and being president of the Eastern Oklahoma Coon Hunters Association. I do sell my hound pups and try to make sure that they go to hunters I know will care for them as well as I do.”
How the Two Complement each other: “One of the reasons I like my job is because I meet new people and help my customers with agricultural loans for land, livestock and equipment. Some of my customers are farmers and ranchers that I know from my teaching profession. Knowing my customers’ backgrounds make the whole banking process easier.”
