Working in a farm successor  as part of a  retirement plan To the Editor, Are you one of the many farmers without an identified farm successor? Purdue University says that’s around 75 percent, and about half expect nonfamily members to take over. A gradual shift of responsibilities and ownership, plus an extended mentoring period, can help ensure the… Read More

It is the very essence of yours and my humanity that we have been given the gift of emotion. From gladness to sadness, and back again, that is our gift. My past experiences have covered a lot of emotional territory. I remember back to when I went to my brother’s oldest daughter’s wedding. I too have… Read More

By Tyler Trieglaff Notes from the Chief Notes from the Farm…After we quit milking cows, we turned the old stanchion barn into pens for calves and goats. Currently, we use part of those pens as an alley way and a chute/headgate so we can work the cattle under cover. This includes preg checking the cows and weaning… Read More

By Tyler Trieglaff Notes from the Chief Notes from the Farm…The total is 48 calves on the ground for the year. I don’t believe there were any huge hiccups the past week with calving. We plan to separate the cows with calves into a different pasture so it will be easier to spot the new born calves.  … Read More

The Prairie Spy Alan “Lindy” Linda The year was 1969. I guess you can rightly say I survived Vietnam, although at the time, after I got home, and once in a while even now, I have to wonder. This you’re about to read? I call it:  “I remember.” I remember stepping off a jet airliner in Danang, stiff-legged… Read More

To the Editor, It’s no secret people across the state are feeling the pinch—from taxes at every corner, to insurance and medical care, costs keep climbing. Meanwhile, Governor Walz and Democrats have shown they’re not listening. Instead, they continue to make life more expensive. And when we talk about the “health” of our healthcare system, there’s… Read More

By Pastor Ryan Stockstrom Harvest Church How much about the Holy Spirit have you heard?  For many of us, we know He is part of the Trinity, and that might be about it.  Maybe you heard “Father, Son, and Holy Spirit” in a prayer. Maybe it came up once in a while. But the fullness of… Read More

By Tyler Trieglaff Notes from the Chief Notes from the Farm…The count is 38 calves on the ground as of press time. We have had one day with five calves and three days with four calves. That leaves us with about 30 to go from the main herd and we have 12 that will be calving in… Read More

Publisher’s Perspective Chad Koenen There is, perhaps, nothing more important when fishing than coming up with a tall tale to go along with the adventure. After all, catching a fish is fun, telling a good story to go along with the adventure—now that is legendary.  Do you remember the time I battled a 20 pound walleye,… Read More

Soap opera at the Dollar General By Tyler Trieglaff Notes from the Chief Notes from the Farm…Well, I’m finally back. We unfortunately lost a wonderful young man in our lives so that put me out of work for a couple weeks.   Last count you had was one calf on the ground. Our calving season officially started on… Read More