Eastern Iowa Farmer Spring 2021

A farming future
is worth the sacrifice
By JENNA STEVENS
Ag in the Classroom
Coordinator
Clinton County Farm Bureau
EASTERN IOWA FARMER
Future is
Still on the Farm.”
If you have a
DeWitt Central FFA
“America’s
member living in
your house or you have seen them
around town, this phrase might look
familiar to you. That is because it is
the slogan selected to represent the
FFA chapter on the back of this year’s
t-shirts. Why? Because of a conversation
that was had by the officer team at
their summer retreat. That conversation
brought up the importance of production
agriculture and how traditional
practices will continue to serve us in
the future.
Agriculture is many things: it is innovation,
it is progress, it is technology,
but most importantly it is farming.
You see, agriculture no longer must
mean green tractors or faded blue overalls.
The term can be used to describe a
roof-top garden in New York City or an
urban chicken coop in California. And
yes, it is all these things; but, the bulk
of production agriculture still happens
here in the finishing barn down the road
or in the combine that I am watching
cross our field as I type this sitting on
my porch.
More than that though, America’s
future is still on the farm because the
farm is what makes up the core of agriculture,
and the people who embrace
this lifestyle are people whose values
need to be included in the future. The
values we find in the farming community
are values like determination,
sacrifice, and faith, things that put into
perspective what is really important.
If you have ever lived with a farmer
during January, you know the face of
determination. It is the soaked coveralls
and frozen hands as he works to unthaw
a cattle waterer after an ice storm
or the sleep that gets sacrificed during
harvest season because the daylight
hours were spent changing out broken
belts.
These are not the fun parts of farming.
I do not know of a single farmer
who considers cleaning up after an ice
storm a good time, but these are the
things that make us resilient, and that is
something our future desperately needs.
Society makes it easy to quit. Quit
the team if you don’t like the coach,
quit your job if you don’t like your
boss, and yet our farmers who fight
against weather and markets and breakdowns,
who have every reason to quit,
don’t.
This is why America’s future continues
to be on the farm. Because farmers
are people who continue to show up
and work an honest day. They are also
the ones teaching the next generation
how to care for their land and livestock
and how to take responsibility for
things beyond themselves.
Farm kids are a dwindling population,
and yet the ones still around
defend this lifestyle fiercely because
somewhere between morning chores
and weekends in the tractor seat, they
see their own futures start to take
shape.
While none of us truly know what
lies ahead, one thing is for certain,
America still needs producers to grow
our food and give direction to the next
generation. The value set of farmers
will continue to be important for years
to come and reminds us that tradition is
its own way forward.
America’s future IS still on the farm,
and a farming future is one worth sacrificing
for. n
Eastern Iowa Farmer photo / contributed
Jake VanderHeiden, a DeWitt Central FFA member,
climbs a grain bin during harvest at his family’s farm
outside of Wheatland. The slogan on the back of
VanderHeiden’s shirt represents the FFA chapter’s
commitment to spreading a positive message about
Iowa agriculture and celebrating the farmers in our
community who work hard to produce our food.
96 Eastern Iowa Farmer | Spring 2021 eifarmer.com