Missouri Neighbors

Jay Wilkins is one of those whose town life and country life are so entwined that figuring out where one ends and the other starts is hopeless. Jay is both the Agricultural Division Chair at Crowder College in Neosho, Mo., and their farm manager. His wife, Tresa, also works at the college.

Former ranchers, originally from Arizona, Margo Chilcott and her husband, Brian, came to the Ozarks seven years ago and fell in love with a place, a 100-acre valley outside West Plains, Mo., in rural Howell County. Both currently work in real estate in southern Missouri.

For Jim and Judy Protiva, of West Plains, Mo., pastured poultry has been part of their lives for almost 20 years. “We took our maiden voyage with chickens in 1996,” recalled Jim. “From there we continued to grow, adapt and raise chickens and turkeys for individual sale and consumption.”

Josh Titus, of Lebanon, Mo., knows that every situation can turn into a learning opportunity and that is the exact mindset he has used when it comes to horsemanship.

Aaron and Kim Fields reside on a farm in Webster County, near Marshfield, Mo. They have always been very active with their Quarter Horses and Missouri Fox Trotters, but four years ago they took the plunge into the cattle business.

For Bill Berg and his family, who's farm lies just southwest of Exeter, Mo., raising hogs has been part of their lives for many years. “I was raised here. My parents moved here from Pratt County, Kansas and bought 120 acres.” Bill shared that his dad raised hogs and butchered them as well. Bill's own childhood memories of having pigs on the farm were also echoed in the next two generations. His daughter, Bridget Schreiner, second youngest of four daughters that Bill and Barbara Berg have, recalled late summer nights of sitting near the sows waiting for baby pigs to be born. Bills 18-year-old grandson, Jesse Hinds, who is the son of daughter Becky, has enjoyed helping his grandpa with the pigs since he was a toddler.

For over 58 years registered Angus cattle have grazed the pastures of Baker Angus in Butler, Mo.

Delicately planted near downtown, Springfield, Mo., grows Urban Roots Farm owned and operated by Adam and Melissa Millsap. Daughter, Bela, 6 and son, Owen, 4, love to get their hands dirty along side mom and dad.

Operating a laying house has many challenges. Tom Leverich of Pioneer near Wheaton, Mo., who owns and manages his laying house said, “The big thing is that you have to be consistent.” In his house (which is 400' x 40') he keeps and maintains approximately 13,000 hens, that lay, at their peak, as many as 12,600 eggs per day. What are the most important things? Tom, who has owned his laying house since 2004, said, “There are four things you have to be consistent with: Quality of the air in the chicken house, temperature, water and feed. If you manage those four things the birds are going to do well.”

In 33 years as an agriculture education instructor, Sam Lower of Lebanon Technology and Career Center, a part of Lebanon High School, has seen an incredible number of changes and also has great hope for the future.