Missouri Neighbors

Paul Crabtree does chores much like many other cattle producers in Southwest Missouri, he also farms, like many other producers, and he is very active in his community. Though many other farmers and ranchers do similar things, Paul does it all on a farm that has been in his family for 115 years.

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Ask any livestock producer and most will tell you that they are familiar with Hereford cattle. These red and white faced bovine are a fairly common sight in the Ozarks. Another less known breed of Hereford comes from the swine family; the Hereford hog. Hereford hogs are an attractive red and white heritage breed originally developed in the Show-Me state. Aside from their color pattern, these hogs are also known for their gentle dispositions.

Kerry Rose has a rare profession. He is a farmer, and he is proud of it. Though many people reading this article are farmers and ranchers, there are fewer every day. When not working on his farm, Kerry works with the Missouri Corn Growers Association (MCGA) to help make sure farmers and ranchers remember they are on the same team.

Bob Chapman has always been a dual career man. For 32 years his life revolved in area vocational schools in Eldon, Rolla and Waynesville where he was school director for 25 years. Four years ago, when he retired from the educational system, he found his opportunity to move to his farm in Dent County, which he had worked towards for many years. Today, in addition to the farm, he also works at the Leonard Wood Institute, a part of the Ft. Leonard Wood system that provides research and development funding to the army, defense contractors, the university and entrepreneurs.

Kenny Hinkle is not psychic, but he tries to be. While many people don’t know what they are going to have for dinner next weekend, Kenny is working hard to make sure that we can have high quality and reasonably priced beef on our tables – 5 years from now.

Dick Nugent is a Master Gardener and the manager of the Community Garden at the Houston branch of the University of Missouri Extension Service. He is just one spoke in a wheel that has been turning for a long time. The University of Missouri, founded in 1839, was the first publicly supported institution in the Louisiana Territory.  In 1888 the Missouri Agriculture Experiment Station was opened in Columbia, Mo. Later, in 1910, the Missouri Extension Council was established and ready to reach out to all areas of the state. In the past century they have worked, studied, analyzed and recorded successes as well as failures of hundreds of ways to get the most out of Missouri land.

"Ten years ago, it started as a joke,” Katie Stewart, vice president of the Southwest Missouri Goat Producers Association, explained how her family’s involvement with Boer goats began. “Bob (Katie’s husband) brought home three baby goats from the sale barn for our children. He called them 'weed eaters' and from there…” she waved a hand towards the lot full of 40 South African goats known for their meat production.

Houston and Kenda Giles share a dedication to all things natural. They farm 120 acres just north of Carthage, Mo., and raise grass-fed dairy and beef cattle, chickens, pigs and sheep without using steroids, hormones or antibiotics.

"If it weren’t for him,” were the words mustered by both Chad Foster and his father-in-law, Ben Coleman simultaneously. The two men stated those words about one another, as they discussed their cattle operation in Hickory County.