Arkansas Neighbors

The story of Cedar Springs Stables is one of adventure and life with horses. Kathleen Gregory did not grow up on a farm or ever lived on a farm until she purchased Cedar Springs Stables. The story really began when her daughter, Kate Marie, was 8 years old. She began riding lessons at Diamond TR, and her son, John, wanted to learn to ride by age 7. Kathleen found herself wanting to groom the horses and then decided to take riding lessons. She found a certain peace when she was with the horses. She knew she wanted a place where she could have horses and quite by accident she found just that.

This is the story of one woman's quest to find the best method for raising her Tamworth hogs. In the process she crafted a natural fit with the highly regarded and strictly regulated Animal Welfare criteria, the gold standard for animal rights.

One way to live the farming life in Arkansas is to own your own place. Another way is to work the farm for someone else and have the pleasure of living on the land. That’s what Nick Dearmore and his family do. The farm, located in Marion County just south of Yellville, Ark., is owned by Dwain Hawkins, but Nick is the day-to-day manager of the place.

Nancy Edgerly’s 660-acre Silver Hill Farm is located just south of St. Joe, Ark. Nancy and her husband moved here from California about 16 years ago. Over the years she’s learned more than the average goat herder about raising Boer goats. Nancy manages her current herd of a little over 200 does on her own. Although her husband helps out and she has a handyman who lives on the property, Nancy prefers working one-on-one with her herd. She said, “You have to be very observant to be a goat herder.” If it’s a scratched utter or a case of pinkeye, sometimes hired help doesn’t see what’s happening. Personal care makes for a long day, but Nancy enjoys what she does.

Sometimes the history of people is determined by the history of the town in which they live. Such is the case with Bill and Joy Stoner. A major turning point in the history of Miami, Okla., was the closing of the BF Goodrich Tire plant. Until that time Bill worked for Miami Stone which made woodstoves, fireplaces, brick and brick machines for the housing industry. Because Bill was gone so much of the time, the couple lived in town and simply never moved, even when they became full-time ranchers. Joy said, "We decided to go to full-time ranching, and the Lord provided." Joy also developed a church-based preschool and learning center to help women who were forced into the workforce as families adjusted to the closing of the plant.

Nou and Lormung Lo came to Arkansas for a vacation and, at the urging of other family members, moved to Lincoln, Ark., in 2004 to become part of the poultry industry. While her husband ran a tax business, Nou ran six chicken houses for George's with money from their 401K, the sale of their home in Omaha, Neb., and some borrowed and long since paid back to family members.

Mike and Alicia Ketcher live in Bunch, Okla. Both are lifetime members of the FFA, and Alicia was the Northeast District FFA State Vice President. The couple strongly believe in the importance of 4-H and FFA. Mike said, "Those organizations teach leadership and responsibility and as a result produce excellent citizens."

Juanita McClellan is 90 years old and an example of what one highly capable and strong willed woman can accomplish in 40 years on her own. Juanita has lived in Cane Hill, Ark., for 65 years, and her grandchildren are the seventh generation on the farm. Her husband Charles passed away in 1971 and she and her son Johnny continued with the slaughterhouse business in Cane Hill for another two years before he died. She sold one year later. Juanita said, "At the time, I didn't know if I was going to sink or swim, so I sold it and started to build the farm of my dreams."

Jim and Diana Hale's home faces a small Ozark mountain outside of Morrow, Ark., devoid of homesteads or even roads. The land directly in front of the house belongs to them and is pasture for the last of a dairy herd in transition to a commercial beef herd using a Black Angus bull. The couple owns 175 acres and rents an additional 160 acres for their 100 momma cows, three Simmons chicken houses and 150 acres of hay fields.

The State of Arkansas began a new program this year called the Arkansas Century Farm Program. Agriculture has always been important in the history of Arkansas. Farms remain the backbone of our agricultural industry, and families who have persevered throughout the past 100 years are being honored.