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CHALK ROCK LAKE FARMS - Menominee, NE - Dan and Mary Schaefer family - Home raised Beef - Hormone-Free or Conventionally Raised. Selling whole, halves and quarters. 55773 895 Rd. Fordyce, NE 68736 -schaefdm@gpcom.net - (402) 357-2133 – www.ChalkRockLakeFarm.com
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, July 7, 2005)
Dan and Mary Schaefer and their sons Matthew and Mason are carrying on a special tradition. The Schaefers and their Chalk Rock Lake Farm were recently honored with the AkSarBen Pioneer Award because their farm has been owned and worked by the same family for four generations and over 100 years.
It takes an extraordinary commitment to the land and the livestock when you are passing on farming tradition. The family takes that same committed approach in selling their home-raised, Chalk Rock Lake beef to area customers.
The Schaefers finish out calves mostly from their 65-head cow herd for their hormone-free feeding program, so the Schaefers and their customers know exactly where their beef came from.
Nestled in the rolling hills of northern Cedar County, Nebraska 4 miles south and three quarter miles east of Yankton near the hamlet of Menominee and Chalk Rock Lake, Dan and Mary raise and market their hormone-free, cornfed beef in quarters, halves, three quarters or the whole beef. They also sell 12 and a half pound and twenty-five pound beef bundles, offering a variety of their flavorful, high quality, home finished beef cuts.
The Schaefers have been direct marketing their homefinished beef for over fifteen years, so they know what their customers want. They can help you decide the type of beef bundles that might be right for your family or they can assist you in deciding how to have your beef processed and packaged.
And its nice to be able to fill your freezer with beef that you know was fed just down the road by a farm family you can trust. Most orders are taken over the phone at 402-357-2133, but you can also order their beef online at chalkrocklakefarm.com or by emailing Dan and Mary at schaefdm@gpcom.net. You can learn more about Chalk Rock Lake Farms and other families raising local food by visiting the web at farmtofamily.net.
And remember, the best food for your table is being grown today just down the road by farmers who care about your family and your food.
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Cwach Natural Meats, Yankton, SD - Gary and Mary Cwach. Homeraised beef. (605) 665-1341.
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, Jan. 24, 2008)
If you're looking for an old-fashioned beef taste, you'll want to make sure you try the products offered by Cwach Meats. Fifth-generation Yankton County farmers with a heritage of raising their own beef, Gary and Mary Cwach and their sons, Dan and Kevin, are pleased to offer beef produced without the use of any kind of antibiotics, chemicals or hormones. Cwach Meats sells whole animals, halves, quarters and individual cuts directly from their farm to satisfied customers around the region. They also offer delivery service to Yankton customers.
Gary says the special feeding system recipe his family has developed over the past 12 years results in naturally raised, great tasting, tender cuts of beef, and their animals are completely traceable from birth to the dinner table. The Cwach family consistently invests their best efforts on their dedicated small family farm to provide high quality food that they are proud to offer as a healthy part of a local food system. For the past 12 years, they have studied the value of and process for naturally improving their soil so that every step in their beef production is focused on nutrition and health.
The process the Cwachs use to raise high quality beef begins with a process to naturally build up healthy soils on their farm. Their animals graze on high quality pastures and grain crops that are carefully cultivated without the use of any type of chemicals. The absence of hormone implants and naturally occurring minerals in the soil combine to produce the flavor and tenderness customers have come to expect from Cwach Meats.
If you want to make home-raised beef from the Cwach family farm available to your family, give Gary and Mary a call at (605) 665-1341 or (605) 660-9362 or visit the web at farmtofamily.net. And remember, If you want to provide your family with food raised with care and integrity, grace your table with quality food from local farm families like Cwach Meats.
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KREYCIK RIVERVIEW ELK RANCH - Niobrara, NE - Kenard, Chris and Steve Kreycik family - Elk and Bison Meat - Weekend Tours of the Ranch - Elk Hunts - Elk Velvet Antler Capsules and Other Related Products. 88971 517 Ave., Niobrara, NE 68760 - (402) 857-3850 - Website - www.nebraskaelktours.com
KREYCIK RIVERVIEW ELK AND BUFFALO RANCH, NIOBRARA, NE
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, May 24, 2007)
When Lewis and Clark visited our region back in 1804, they were awed by huge herds of buffalo and elk, roaming free across the prairie. There aren’t many spots on this earth where you can relive that experience, but Kreycik Riverview Elk and Buffalo Ranch in northern Knox County along the Niobrara River at Niobrara, Nebraska is one of those special spots.
Kenard and Chris Kreycik, their son Steve and daughter Stacy and her husband Clint work hard caring for their elk and buffalo herds and providing a lively historical experience of natural heritage through their summer covered wagon tours through the rolling grasslands around the ranch.
The family invites you to tour their elk and bison pastures for a small fee on summer Saturdays with tours at 10 am, 2 pm and 4 pm. On Sundays, you can take tours at 2 pm or 4 pm. They are open for tours on weekends from May 15 to September 30. Kreycik’s are closed some holidays, but offer special groups of ten or more tours on other days by appointment. It’s always best to call ahead.
The farm tours take you into the past, where you get an upclose view of the bison and elk herds Kreycik’s have been building for years, including a look at the family’s majestic elk bull, Montana Sky.
During the tours, Kenard and Chris explain the workings of their ranch, that also includes cattle, goats and crops. They operate a gift shop where you can purchase tasty elk and bison meat, known for high protein and low cholesterol as well as elk velvet capsules, known for medicinal properties. They offer a variety of other elk and bison products as well as Lewis and Clark gifts. Kreycik’s sell buffalo and elk hides and buffalo skulls as well. And don’t forget buffalo chips for that special birthday gift for the person who has everything.
The family also offers private elk and buffalo hunts during certain times of the year. Kreycik’s are pros. They’ve been raising elk and buffalo for 27 years and have been offering tours for 13 years.
To get to Kreycik’s Ranch, where the elk and buffalo still roam, turn south off of Highway 12, the Outlaw Scenic Byway, just west of the Niobrara River Bridge and follow the signs until you reach a sweeping hill with a panoramic view of the river. Their ranch is nestled down below the ridge. Call ahead at (402) 857-3850. Get more information by visiting Kreycik’s websites at www.nebraskaelktours.com and kskelkhunt.com or log onto farmtofamily.net, powered by Avera Sacred Heart Hospital. And remember, for a visit into the what the West was really like, take a ride on the wild side at Kreycik’s Riverview Elk and Buffalo Ranch at Niobrara, Nebraska.
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NORTH STAR NEIGHBORS – Fullerton, NE – Family Farm Group, Naturally Raised Meats, LLC – Selling Naturally-Raised Beef, Pork, Lamb and Chicken- By the animal, specific cut or in variety and gift packages. RR 1, Box 40, Fullerton, NE 68638 – (877) 617-2333 or on the web – www.northstarneighbors.com. See a feature story on North Star Neighbors by visiting Northern Plains Family Farmer newsletter – www.bowviewfarm.com/FamilyFarmer.shtml
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PRAIRIE BLOSSOM TRAILS - Fordyce, NE - Pat and Julie Steffen Family - Grass-finished Highland Beef - Selling wholes, halves or quarters – Ask about our Farm Tours - 55582 887 Rd., Fordyce, NE 68736 - (402) 357-3702
(Text from KKYA Radio Farm to Family Connection Special, Apr. 1, 2004)
There is nothing more scenic than the rolling hills and valleys of northern Cedar County coming alive with the green growth of spring. Pat and Julie Steffen and their four children of Prairie Blossom Trails at Fordyce, Nebraska know all about Mother Nature’s handiwork, living and working their historic family farm and raising and selling quality grassfed beef.
Back in 1991, Pat and Julie seeded down their row crop land to orchard grass, clovers and wheatgrass pasture. Now they rotate their cowherd of docile Scottish Highland cattle around small paddocks, getting more grazing days from their land base and regenerating the diversity and health of their grassland and soils.
Pat says Highland cows are good mothers and the breed adapts well to the harsh climate of the Plains. Besides, Highland beef is high in protein and iron and its known for its good taste.
According to nationally acclaimed researcher and author, Jo Robinson, grassfed beef is low in cholesterol and provides a number of other cancer fighting, heart healthy benefits. Besides, Pat and Julie know that their grazing system – finishing cattle on grass – is good for the land.
They sell their beef right from the farm, as halves, quarters and by the individual cuts. They like to have orders in ahead of time so they can schedule their production through the coming months.
The family has always enjoyed their landscape, occasionally taking a picnic lunch on the high hills overlooking their valley and farm.
Now the Steffen’s are sharing their view, also offering farm tours through their prairie trails, where old wagon ruts and native wildflowers still grace the landscape, just in view of historic St. Joseph’s Catholic Church at Constance a couple of miles away.
For more information on Pat and Julie, their farm tours and grassfed beef, give them a call at 402-357-3702.
Give your children a taste of their heritage. Get to know the families raising your food
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GUNDY’S BEEF AND FARMERS MARKET, MISSION HILL – YANKTON, SD
Jon and Diana Gunderson – Mission Hill, SD – Selling natural beef, locally raised pork, lamb, poultry, vegetables and homemade bread and soup mixes through year around farmers market – Located in Charlie’s Pizza parking lot garage – Gundy’s Beef also featured on Charlie’s Pizza. Place an order at (605) 665-9478 or email gundysbeef@webtv.net.
(Text from KKYA Radio Farm to Family Connection Special – Apr. 8, 2004)
Jon and Diana Gunderson of Gundy’s Beef at Mission Hill like knowing their customers by name. Jon says they enjoy representing the food they raise and are happy to field questions from their customers about the food they produce.
That personal contact with the folks you are growing food for is something important to the Gundersons. In fact their home-raised, natural beef is so flavorful and popular, it is even featured as an ingredient on pizzas at Charlie’s Pizza House in Yankton – a longtime, almost legendary restaurant along Summit Street, where Diana is manager.
After 44 years in business, Charlie’s is the oldest existing pizza place in South Dakota and customers there are fortunate enough to sample Gundy’s Beef first hand.
In addition to selling beef, the Gunderson’s also operate a year around farmers market every Saturday morning from 9 am til 12:30, from the garage at the Charlie’s Pizza parking lot. They also take food orders during the week. They sell only farm fresh, locally grown products like natural pork and lamb, as well as free range chickens and vegetables in season. Diana also markets her homemade honey, oatmeal and flaxseed bread and soup mixes through the farmers market.
Their meat is all natural with no growth hormones, drugs or antibiotics. You can buy halves and quarters and a wide variety of meats including beef jerky as well as hamburger patties and sirloin steaks for the grill. They also offer pork cutlets, spareribs, hams and bratwurst as well as leg of lamb roasts, lamb chops and rack of lamb.
You can contact Jon and Diana Gunderson of Gundy’s Beef by calling (605) 665-9478 or (605) 661-7967. Email them at gundysbeef@webtv.net or just stop by their farmers market located in the Charlie’s Pizza parking lot garage at 804 Summit Street just up from Avera Sacred Heart Hospital on Saturday mornings.
If you’re looking for great beef, you can buy the best in land directly from a family farmer near you.
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KECK GRAZING, INC. – CROFTON, NE
Keck Grazing, Mark and Judy Keck – Crofton, NE – Selling grassfed beef in halves, quarters or individual cuts. Direct off the farm. Call (402) 388-4764 evenings or (402) 388-4496 daytime. Farm is six miles north of Crofton on Highway 121 and two miles west.
(Text from KKYA Radio Farm to Family Connection Special – Apr. 22, 2004)
Mark and Judy Keck of Keck Grazing west of Crofton, Nebraska probably have more roots in the soils of northern Knox County than most folks. Their ancestors have lived on the land along the Missouri River for nearly 150 years and were some of the early white settlers in this part of the country.
With that kind of heritage backing up this husband and wife team, you can bet that stewardship runs deep through their farming operation. That’s why they’ve gone to a grass-based production system for their Angus cattle herd.
The Kecks use an intensive rotational grazing system, grazing cattle in small grassy paddocks and moving them often to fresh forage during the growing season. That way, they get more diversity and healthier soils and pastures, and their cattle respond well to having a new crop of forage to graze at short intervals.
Their grass-finished cattle are grazed on a lush, fresh diet of forage, so their meat not only tastes good, but research proves that it’s high in cancer fighting conjugated linoleic acids or CLAs as well as good Omega 3 fatty acids. Grassfed beef is known to be low in cholesterol and fat. Besides, Keck’s grassfed meat is all-natural, raised without antibiotics or hormones on a diet nature provides.
They market their Angus or Angus cross, grassfed beef in whole, halves and quarters. It’s all processed at a federally inspected plant in Wausa, Nebraska. So you know that natural beef from Keck’s Grazing is really nature’s food, fresh and safe, raised by a farm family you can trust.
If you’re interested in purchased beef from Mark and Judy, just give them a call at (402) 388-4764 in the evenings or (402) 388-4496 during the daytime. Their farm is located six miles north of Crofton on Highway 121 and 2 miles west.
Give your family the freshest food there is. Feed them nature’s food, raised naturally by a local farm family you know and trust.
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Yankton Nurseries, Yankton, SD
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, May 10, 2007)
Nothing says spring like high quality, locally grown nursery stock produced by folks like Jay and Tracy Gurney at Yankton Nurseries. Talk about a family with a heritage for growing good plants. Jay Gurney, his wife Tracy and their children James, Michael and Emily have a family history in the nursery business that dates back to just after the Civil War. With help from their children and mothers, Jane Gurney and Lucy Holdorf, their Yankton Nurseries have been providing residents with quality bedding plants, trees and shrubs for 28 years.
Charles Walter Gurney started Hesperian Nursery in Concord, Nebraska in Dixon County back in 1869, selling primarily orchard nursery stock to settlers moving into the region. His sons came to Yankton in 1897 to expand their plant nursery business into the Dakotas.
Jay Gurney learned the trade, working at the nursery from 1963 until 1977, when he started his own nursery business.
The Gurneys raise bedding plants like tomatoes, petunias and geraniums from seed. They also grow perennials, shrubs and trees. They have a great garden center at the nursery, offering gardening and landscaping equipment and gifts.
Jay and Tracy have a full line of nice size containered trees and large shrubs ready for planting, including numerous colorful broadleaf trees of all sizes. They also are well known for a gigantic selection of roses – including several different varieties of hardy shrub roses.
The nice thing about Yankton Nurseries is that you can often find Jay and Tracy working with the plants. They and their knowledgeable staff can answer gardening and tree planting questions, providing technical support for their customers’ planting projects. For Jay and Tracy, that’s one of the most enjoyable parts of their business.
Yankton Nurseries is located at 2000 Ferdig Street, just north of Sertoma Park in Yankton. They are open from 8 am to 8 pm weekdays, 8 am to 5 pm on Saturdays and noon to 5 pm on Sundays. You can call them at (605) 665-6560. Learn more about Yankton Nurseries by visiting the web at www.farmtofamily.net powered by Avera Sacred Heart Hospital. And remember, for a landscape with class, begin with plants grown by a local nursery you know and trust.
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RICHARD AND KATHLEEN SOBOTKA FAMILY - Inman, NE - Natural Pork, Grassfed Beef, Free Range - Pastured Poultry and Eggs, Turkeys for Thanksgiving, Fresh Garden Vegetables in Season. Ask about our CSA garden or watch for our farmstand in O'Neill. RR 1, Box 48, Inman, NE 68742 –
(402) 394-5537
FEATURE FARM FAMILY – RICHARD AND KATHLEEN SOBOTKA, INMAN, NE –
(Text from their KKYA Radio Farm to Family Connection Special – March 11, 2004)
Locally grown, fresh harvested, vine ripened produce just sounds healthy and good. But there aren’t many farms that grow and raise almost anything you could ever want to grace your dinner table. Richard and Kathleen Sobotka and their eight children have a family farm east of O’Neill, Nebraska near Inman, that does just that.
Farming the home place since 1963, the family has expanded their offerings to cover it all. They raise drug free pork, grassfed or cornfed beef, pastured poultry and eggs, turkeys and lambs along with a full offering of naturally grown vegetables in season.
They have a Community Supported Agriculture or CSA garden. Their CSA customers pay a pre-determined membership fee for the opportunity to come out and pick a big basket of food every week. They now have loyal CSA customers around the region including in the Yankton, Bloomfield and Neligh areas.
Richard loves the diversity of their operation. He really enjoys educating customers about the value of their quality food. The family started out by direct marketing sweet corn a few other vegetables fifteen years ago and have expanded into many varieties of almost any vegetable you could want, including heirloom, Asian and specialty vegetables. They still maintain a farmstand during regular weekly hours in O’Neill. In an effort to expand their farm diversity, develop relationships with more loyal customers and in hopes of keeping their enterprising children involved in the farm, they began raising pastured poultry and eggs four years ago. With help from their children that range in age from 6 to 19 years, they continue to expand their CSA garden.
For more information about joining their CSA garden or purchasing food from the Sobotka farm, you can contact the Sobotka’s at (402) 394-5537.
If you want to do something special for your family – help them make the farm to dinner table connection by purchasing locally raised, fresh harvested food.
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Tramp Buffalo Farm, Crofton, NE - Wilfred and Donna Tramp. (402) 388-4570
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, Apr. 7, 2005)
Traveling down the Outlaw Scenic Byway, Highway 12, just east of Crofton, Nebraska, motorists are surprised to see a herd of buffalo grazing in pastures and stubble fields on the north side of the road. That herd has grazed there since 1990, when Wilfred and Donna Tramp bought their first buffalo breeding stock at a sale at Custer State Park.
At first these long-time family farmers purchased a few young buffalo just for the fun of it. But their hobby has turned into a full-fledged meat business. Since 1995, they’ve been selling high quality buffalo meat to satisfied customers directly off their farm and through a number of area restaurants and convenience stores.
According to the National Bison Association, buffalo meat is extremely healthy and low in fat with only 31 calories per ounce serving. And there’s something special about observing the majestic King of the Plains grazing right here, like they did in the days of Lewis and Clark.
Wil says that their buffalo seem quite content out on the range. They do best if you just leave them alone. So other than regular vaccinations of breeding stock, Wilfred and Donna run their buffalo herd drug free. The animals live on grass and hay for most of their lives, except for a short period just before processing when they are fed home-raised corn.
You can try Tramp’s buffalo at the Argo Hotel and Sports Stop in Crofton, Ole's in Niobrara or the Quarry in Yankton. Their tasty jerky sticks are available in convenience stores in the area.
If you’d like to pick up Tramp’s buffalo steaks, roasts or ground meat at their farm and try it out for supper, just give Wilfred and Donna a call at (402) 388-4570. Their farm is located one mile east and one mile north of Crofton. They also sell whole animals, halves and quarters, all processed at a federally inspected plant. If you want a taste of real prairie cuisine, grace your dinner table with Tramp home-raised buffalo tonight.
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T & R BUTCHER BLOCK, FORDYCE, NE
Rich and Tricia Millage – Fordyce, NE – Custom processing beef, pork and deer in season. Selling award-winning ham, sausage, ring bologna, beef sticks and hot dogs and other fine products. Cut to order ribeyes during grilling season. Located on Main Street in Fordyce or call (402) 357-3571.
(Text from KKYA Radio Farm to Family Connection Special, May 20, 2004)
For many years, Fordyce, Nebraska has been known for producing some of the finest meat products around. Rich and Tricia Millage at T & R Butcher Block on Main Street in Fordyce have obtained legendary status of their own, winning over the taste buds of customers around the Missouri River valley as well as the judges of several meat product competitions.
In recent years, the Millage’s and their three daughters, Cady, Jaimie and Rachel, have taken honors at the annual Nebraska Meat Processor’s Association contests for products like summer sausage, ham and ring bologna.
Tricia says customers travel great distances for packages of five pounds or more of their jerky, but she is also proud of T & R’s award winning beef sticks and specialty hot dogs. If you want a little nostalgia on the dinner table, try out their ethnic and unique sausages including German, mild and spicy Italian, Mexican, Country or old-fashioned sausage like grandma always served.
All of their meat products are only made with lean meat from locally raised animals. Rich and Tricia make everything themselves, so every meat package they sell has been personally handled by the Millage’s to preserve quality. That’s why their customers say their meat tastes better and is a better value.
They also custom process beef, hogs and deer in season. Customers can book their own animals or the Millage’s can help them purchase animals for processing from local family farmers. Tricia says during grilling season they often cut ribeyes fresh to order for customers who want to take a meal home with them that evening.
T & R Butcher Block is open daily except Tuesdays and Sundays, from 8 am to 5:30 pm and til noon on Saturdays. You can call Rich and Tricia at (402) 357-3571 or stop by their business along Main Street in Fordyce.
If you want the best tasting meat for dinner tonight, buy locally grown and processed products from a family owned hometown locker you know and trust.
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TWO RIVERS SALOON – NIOBRARA, NE. – Terry and Tamralyn Kelley – Locally raised elk and buffalo on the menu. (402) 857-3340
FEATURE LOCAL RESTAURANT – TWO RIVERS SALOON, NIOBRARA, NE
(Text from KKYA Farm to Family Connection Special Feature – March 25, 2004)
Great service. Superb locally grown food, fresh and homemade. What more could restaurant customers want? Well, that’s what you get when you dine out at Two Rivers Saloon at Niobrara, Nebraska. Tamralyn Kelley, husband Terry and brother in law, Pat purchased Two Rivers back in 2002, when they moved with their children Jacob and Chase from Texas to beautiful western Knox County.
Talk about a setting. You can look out the restaurant back door and see the Missouri River and just up the road a bit is the confluence of the Niobrara and Mighty Missouri.
Not only do they feature great steaks, burgers, fish and prime rib on Saturdays at Two Rivers, but starting last year, Tamralyn and Terry made a special effort to complete their menu with other locally grown meat, like buffalo from Kreycik Riverview Elk and Buffalo Ranch located just across the Niobrara River and from Tramp Buffalo Farms at Crofton. The elk on their menu comes from Waipiti Springs Ranch south of Niobrara.
Two Rivers takes pride in offering great service to everyone who comes through the door. Tamralyn says she calls most of their customers by name and those they haven’t met before they walk in the door soon become friends. That’s the nice thing about a family owned and operated restaurant like Two Rivers.
So if you’re looking to dine out, travel over to Two Rivers Saloon, just across Standing Bear Bridge along Highway 12 in the main business district in scenic and historic Niobrara. It’s worth the trip. For more information, you can call Tamralyn and Terry at (402) 857-3340.
Treat your family to a special dining experience at a restaurant where service is number one and locally grown food graces the menu.
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CHUCK AND BEV HENKEL, NORFOLK, NE
Chuck and Bev Henkel, Norfolk, NE - Selling pastured poultry and eggs, natural pork and grassfed lamb and beef. Tucker Hill Farm, (402) 371-5787 or email bchenkel@conpoint.com.
(Text from KKYA Radio Farm to Family Connection Special, June 3, 2004)
Chuck and Bev Henkel and their son Karl of Tucker Hill Farm northwest of Norfolk, Nebraska love diversity. They manage their rolling hills, wooded ravines and native pastures with a management intensive grazing system that fosters new plant growth and an abundance of wildlife, alongside their grazing livestock.
The family direct markets grass fed lamb and beef, pastured turkey, chickens and eggs as well as natural pork to customers around the region. Realizing the health benefits of grass based livestock systems for those eating the meat, poultry and eggs and those stewarding the land, the Henkels work hard to produce food that is good for you.
The Henkel’s love living among their grasslands and they particularly like the direct connection they have with their customers. Farm visits by customers picking up food at the Henkel’s farm result in a special relationship. Chuck and Bev say they learn from their customers and hopefully their customers enjoy learning more about how their food is raised.
Customers travel far and wide to purchase their quality products and because of the relationship they’ve developed with Chuck and Bev. The Henkel’s cattle and sheep are fed only a grass-based diet, with no antibiotics, hormones, commercial feed or starch grain.
They started out on the farm raising vegetables, a few hogs and meat rabbits while working in town, but in 1995, the town jobs ended and they started direct marketing their quality food in earnest.
Chuck and Bev are especially proud of their grass finished lamb, which many of their regular customers say is the best lamb they’ve ever tasted.
You can visit the Henkel’s farm by appointment or call them about their products at (402) 371-5787. They’d be happy to send out a letter to you with specific product information. You can email them at bchenkel@conpoint.com or learn more on the web at farmtofamily.net.
Give your family food you can be proud of – raised with tender loving care by a farm family you know and trust.
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WAUSA LOCKER, WAUSA, NE
Wausa Locker, Wausa, NE - LaVonne Anderson, USDA Inspected Locker, Custom Processing, Specialty Meat Products, Locker Rentals, 516 E. Broadway. Call (402) 586-2882.
(Text from KKYA Radio Farm to Family Connection Special – June 10, 2004)
Residents around Wausa, Nebraska in Knox County are pretty proud of their Swedish heritage. So it’s no wonder that one of the customer favorites to come out of Wausa Locker downtown is Swedish potato sausage and Swedish meatballs. These specialty items are the hit of the community’s annual September Smorgasbord. But for Wausa Locker, that’s only the beginning.
This hometown meat processor is one of the few USDA inspected facilities in Northeast Nebraska. So a good share of the family farmers direct marketing meat products around this region have their animals processed at Wausa.
LaVonne and the crew at Wausa Locker aim to please their customers. They of course offer their own hot dogs, regular and green onion brats, cured pork chops, breakfast sausages and many other specialty items. If you want a half or quarter hog or beef to process, they can connect you with a local family farmer to purchase from. They will also help customers decide how they want the animals processed, what products might suit an individual family and how it should be packaged for convenience. Along with custom processing, they also offer locker rentals. And they process deer in season.
For the folks at Wausa Locker, supporting area family farmers and serving area family consumers are the reasons they are around. All the meat products they offer in their meatcase come from animals raised locally by family farmers in the region, so it is food you can trust.
Wausa Locker is located at 516 E. Broadway, on the south side of Highway 84 in downtown Wausa. They are open daily during the week and until noon on Saturdays. You can call LaVonne for more information at (402) 586-2882 or learn more about Wausa Locker on the web at farmtofamily.net.
Show your family how much you care. Get the best quality food there is, raised and processed locally by folks you can trust.
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HISTORIC ARGO HOTEL, CROFTON, NE
Argo Hotel, Crofton, NE - Sandra Bogner McDonald, Elegant dining featuring locally raised Tramp Buffalo Farms buffalo as well as prime rib, steaks and seafood. Honeymoon suite and other lodging. Built 1912. Listed on National Register of Historic Places. Call 1-800-607-ARGO or visit their website at www.theargohotel.com.
(Text from KKYA Radio Farm to Family Connection Special, June 23, 2005)
It's like getting away without going away. Every day is something special at Crofton's Historic Argo Hotel. Sandra and the folks at the Argo know how to make your celebration unforgettable. The Argo offers casual dining in an elegant atmosphere.
But the historic 1912 hotel also offers fine lodging with suites honoring Lewis and Clark, actress Leslie Brooks, the Governor's suite, Marcella's suite and others. Many of the suites offer a wet bar and jacuzzi along with the fine amenities folks have come to expect from the Argo.
Sandra is proud to list locally grown buffalo from Tramp Buffalo Farms east of Crofton on her menu – along with fine center cut steaks, prime rib, chicken and seafood – with a new dining room special every night. The also have a new children's menu.
The Argo goes Hawaiian for the month of August with a tiki bar serving cool pina coladas and other drinks from the tropics. The waitresses will be dressed for the islands and every guest will be welcomed with the customary leiau. After your meal, you can relax in the Argo's speakeasy lounge in the basement.
Sandra and her crew offer special packages that might include visits to other regional attractions or maybe even a balloon ride. They cater to hunters visiting the region as well.
Whether you are celebrating a special anniversary, wedding, birthday or just a night on the town, the folks at the Argo know how to pamper their customers and keep you coming back again and again.
The Argo Hotel is open for lodging all the time. The dining room is open Tuesday through Sunday and is closed on Monday. The hotel is located at 211 W. Kansas St, just a block west of First Street in downtown Crofton. You can get more information by call the Argo at 1-800-607-ARGO or by visiting their website at www.theargohotel.com.
And remember, if you want to enjoy an historic hometown gem, visit the friendly place – the Argo Hotel in Crofton, Nebraska.
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CREIGHTON LOCKER, CREIGHTON, NE
Creighton Locker, Creighton, NE - Les and Diane Baller, Specialty Meat Products including Diane's Delicious Prime Rib - Ready to Use, Custom Processing, Deli with Homemade Salads and Meat. Call (402) 358-3442.
(Text from KKYA Radio Farm to Family Connection Special, June 24, 2004)
Creighton Locker along Highway 59 in the heart of downtown Creighton, Nebraska in Knox County is a place you really can’t miss. Just look for the big steer outside their door. Les and Diane Baller have owned and operated Creighton Locker since 1972, so they not only know their business and community, but they know their customers.
They offer a variety of specialty meat items for the summer season like hot dogs, bologna and luncheon meat through their deli section in addition to a variety of cheeses and homemade salads. But Diane’s Delicious Prime Rib is her favorite product because it is ready to go. This fully cooked product can be dropped into boiling water for five minutes and served, so it’s fast, convenient and good.
Les and Diane also make specialty meat products like all kinds of different sausages. If you’re looking for a quarter or half, they can hook you up with a local farmer you can purchase from or they can take care of it for you.
With the kind of experience the Baller’s have behind their business, you know they process only the best meat available and sell only quality products handled with care by folks you can trust.
Creighton Locker offers custom livestock processing with butchering days for beef on Monday and Tuesdays and hogs on Wednesdays. They are open 8 am to 5:30 pm Monday through Friday and until noon on Saturday. Call Creighton Locker for more information at (402) 358-3442 or visit the web at farmtofamily.net.
Food raised by local family farmers and processed by folks you know and trust is really the best quality and safest food there is.
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AVON LOCKER, AVON, SD
Avon Locker in Avon, SD is located at 104 N. Main. Call them for specialty meat products and custom processing at (605) 286-3427.
(Text from KKYA Farm to Family Connection Radio Special, July 1, 2004)
Dave and Sandy Brandt from Avon Locker at Avon, South Dakota have been processing locally raised meat from family farms around the region for over twelve years now. Dave says that all the specialty meat products they make at Avon Locker are really good, including their hot dogs, bologna and jerky sticks – but he probably likes their homemade brats best of all.
Avon Locker sells all of their homemade meat products from their processing facility on Main Street in Avon. They also do custom processing of beef, pork, lamb and deer in season with butchering days on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Dave says that if you’ve never had farm fresh animals processed before, they can help you decide how to have it processed and packaged and which specialty meat products might be right for your family. If you are looking for halves or quarters, Dave and Sandy can help you purchase your meat from a local farm family. For custom processing, call ahead early to reserve a butchering day.
You can contact Avon Locker at (605) 286-3427 or stop by their facility at 104 N. Main Street in Avon. For more information about Dave and Sandy’s locker and other family businesses where you can purchase food raised right here in our own region by area family farmers, visit the web at www.farmtofamily.net.
Locally raised food processed by folks you know and trust is really the best quality and safest food there is. So support your hometown by placing your hometown’s finest food on your dinner table tonight.
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RUT’S HONEY, PLAINVIEW, NE
Rut’s Honey is collected in Boyd County and processed in Plainview. For more information call Mike and Deb at (402) 582-3532.
(Text from KKYA Farm to Family Connection Radio Special, July 8, 2004)
Mike and Deb Rutledge from Plainview, Nebraska are carrying on a family tradition that dates back to 1917. Their homegrown honey – Rut’s Honey – comes from bees feasting on alfalfa and clover fields in Boyd County near Lynch, in the shadow of Old Baldy along the Lewis and Clark Trail. Mike says it is the best kind of honey you can find in the world – light in color and aroma and mild in flavor.
Honey is nature’s perfect sweetener, containing a wide array of vitamins, minerals, amino acids and antioxidants our bodies need. It has been recognized for its flavor and healthful properties as far back as the 30th century B.C. when Egyptians used honey as a food sweetener.
European honey bees were introduced into North America in the early 1600’s – now there are over 200,000 beekeepers in the U.S. and around 200 million pounds of honey is produced in our country every year.
That’s a lot when you consider it takes over two million flowers for honeybees to produce one pound of honey. Bees help agriculture too by pollinating millions of acres of fruit, vegetables, oilseed and legume seed crops that depend on insects for pollination.
So if you want some of the best honey around, call Rutledge’s at Plainview in the land of milk and honey. They bottle their product in squeeze bottles and one and three pound and larger jars. Their honey is sold at St. James Marketplace at St. James, Nebraska or you can order by calling Mike and Deb at (402) 582-3532. For more information visit the web at farmtofamily.net.
Nature provides us with the best food there is, so if you’re looking for something sweet to grace your dinner table, make sure it is honey from local fields, processed by a family you know and trust.
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CUTHILLS VINEYARD, PIERCE, NE
Nebraska's First Winery in a beautiful, elegant setting - just three miles west of Pierce, Nebraska. Visit them on the web at www.cuthills.com.
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, Aug. 17, 2006)
Ed and Holly Swanson of Cuthills Vineyard three miles west of Pierce, Nebraska near Willow Lake State Recreation Area are Nebraska pioneers. They are the innovators and dreamers who knew wine grapes would grow in Northeast Nebraska. That’s why Ed planted his first vineyard back in 1985.
Growing grapes and making wine was nothing new in the Heartland, but the Swanson’s winery became the state’s first commercial winery since Prohibition was repealed in the 1930’s. Ed researched hardy grape varieties that thrived in this region and became an ambassador for the state’s burgeoning wine industry, helping new vineyards get started and encouraging new interest in growing grapes.
Ninety percent of their award winning wine is sold from the vineyard’s beautifully restored 1920’s barn turned winery or shipped to customers where regulations allow.
Cuthills offers vineyard tours and wine tasting during regular hours, but serious wine and music enthusiasts won’t want to miss their 11th annual Blues Festival set for Saturday Aug. 19. Great Blues bands will again take the stage including the Midwestern sounds of Out of the Blue at 1 pm; Chicago blues standout Joe Moss at 3 pm; Andrew Jr. Boy Jones at 5:30 and young blues innovator, Eric Sardinas at 8 pm. Visitors can also enjoy wine sampling, winery tours, trolley rides through the vineyards, cooking demos, food vendors, a caricuture artist and the Midwest Kite Flying demonstrations. Parking at the festival is free or you can take motorcoach transportation from nearby Pierce.
So Ed and Holly tell visitors to bring a big blanket and some chairs and make a weekend of it at Cuthills Vineyard. They are located three miles west of Pierce on 853 Road just north of Willow Lake. Call Ed and Holly at 402-329-6774 or get advance discounted tickets online at cuthills.com. For more information about Cuthills Vineyard and other places you can buy locally raised products, visit the web at farmtofamily.net, now powered by Avera Sacred Heart Hospital.
And remember, for the finest wine and the best is Blues, visit Cuthills Vineyard – Nebraska’s First Vineyard - this Saturday for their 11th annual Blues Festival, just outside Pierce, Nebraska.
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The Wood Shop - Steve and Dawn Dolesh
Custom Kitchen Cabinets, Handmade Furniture, Heirloom Pieces - We can build anything from wood ranging from small jewelry boxes to staircases and large cabinets. Located at 108 East Main Street in downtown Pierce, Nebraska. Call (402) 329-4715.
(Text from Farm to Family Connection Radio Special, KKYA, 93.1 FM for Thursday, July 29, 2004)
Steve and Dawn Dolesh began a labor of love just over a year ago when they turned their ten-year hobby of designing and building quality wood cabinets and furniture into a full-time business.
The Dolesh’s custom wood design business known as the Wood Shop is located on the south side of Main Street in downtown Pierce, Nebraska. From their shop, Steve designs and builds a wide range of products – anything from small jewelry boxes all the way to staircases, china hutches and his specialty – custom kitchen cabinets.
If it can be built, Steve will get it done. Dawn says that she’s constantly amazed at her husband’s eye for design, incorporating unique aspects of furniture pieces or heirloom wood products into new, custom built items or capturing the spirit of a customer’s wishes into something new and unique.
And all the work – from design, to construction to the finishing - is done by the Dolesh’s own hands.
They can do almost anything, but Steve particularly enjoys building custom kitchen cabinets. He and Dawn work hard to give customers that personal touch you get only by dealing with folks who actually do all the work themselves.
Craftsmanship is number one at the Wood Shop, so you know that furniture and cabinets produced there by local hands have a quality unmatched anywhere else.
If you are looking for kitchen cabinets and other furniture and wood products, why not look to the Dolesh’s for your next project. You can call them at (402) 329-4715, email them at woodshop@ptcnet.net or stop by their shop at 108 East Main Street in downtown Pierce, Nebraska.
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PIERCE LOCKERS, PIERCE, NE
Pierce Lockers, Pierce, NE - Terry Wragge - Famous for Wragge Dogs. (402) 329-4365.
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, March 13, 2008)
Terry Wragge has been in the locker business at Pierce Lockers in Pierce, Nebraska, for more than 30 years. For a good share of those years, the locker has featured his famous hand-twisted hotdogs – the Wragge dogs – and customers from 47 states stop by to purchase this unique and tasty product.
If you talk to Terry, he's sure to tell you that the Wragge dogs are one of his personal favorites when it comes to the specialty meat products they process in Pierce. But he's also proud to offer Pierce Lockers' summer sausage, ring bologna, dried beef, Polish sausage, beef and pork bacon, ham loaf and hamburgers.
Now that your tastebuds have been tantalized, you need to know that its important to call ahead to the locker to order some of these products because Terry says their specialty items, like the Wragge dogs, fly off the shelves so fast, it's challenging to keep a supply on hand.
In addition to all their delicious specialty meats, Pierce Lockers also provide custom butchering of beef and pork on Tuesdays. Customers are encouraged to reserve processing dates as soon as possible to ensure that the locker can fill the order.
For folks who haven't purchased farm fresh meat before, Terry will be happy to assist in finding a local family farmer to buy from. He can also help you decide how to have the meat processed and packaged to fit your personal needs. If you don't have enough freezer space for your meat at home, you can rent locker space from Terry.
Pierce Lockers is open weekdays 7 am to 5 pm and Saturdays 8 am til noon. They're located at 117 N. Brown Street, just a half block off Main Street and just south of the courthouse in Pierce. For more information, you can call Pierce Lockers at 402-329-4365. Learn more about Pierce Lockers and other places where you can buy locally raised food by visiting the web at farmtofamily.net, powered by Avera Sacred Heart Hospital. And remember, when you buy local food, you buy the best food.
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OSMOND PROCESSING, OSMOND, NE
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, Oct. 11, 2007)
Of all the great specialty meat products Craig Davis makes at Osmond Processing in downtown Osmond, Nebraska, he probably likes his unique onion bratwursts and homemade bacon the best. Along with his hot dogs, these are customer favorites around Osmond.
Craig also makes summer sausage, ring bologna, breakfast sausage and other specialty products from locally raised beef and pork. Processing high quality food is in Craig’s family tree. He learned the business from his father who taught meat cutting at Western Iowa Tech in Sioux City and who ran the locker in Crofton for many years.
Craig and his wife Paula bought the locker is Osmond in 1998 and are putting his experience in practice for the local community. They process beef and pork, Monday through Thursday. If you want to have an animal custom processed, be sure to call ahead to reserve a date.
If you’re looking for locally raised, farm fresh meat, Craig can help you purchase an animal from a local farmer and give you assistance in how to have it processed and packaged.
He says purchasing farm fresh meat becomes even more economical when two or more families go together to purchase an animal
.If you’d like to order some of Craig’s brats, bacon, hot dogs or other specialty items, just give him a call to order ahead. You can call Osmond Processing at (402) 748-3999 or stop in at North State Street in Osmond. It’s the big blue building downtown. You can’t miss it.
And remember, if you want high quality, local food on your family’s table, purchase your dinner from folks you know and trust like Craig Davis at Osmond.
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PIERCE OLD TIME THRESHING BEE, PIERCE, NE
Pierce Old Time Threshing Bee held the third weekend in September at Pierce County Fairgrounds in Pierce, NE. Call (402) 329-4245.
(Text from Farm to Family Connection KK93 Radio Special, Sept. 9, 2004)
Walking on the Pierce County Fairgrounds in Pierce, Nebraska this upcoming weekend, you might think you’ve stepped back in time about seventy or eighty years. The sounds, sights and smells of old time agriculture and farm life are all around. At the 28th annual Pierce Old Time Threshing Bee set for this weekend, Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 18 and 19th, you can expect to hear the shrill whistle of an old steam tractor, to see the old time tractors, cars and exhibits and to smell the earthy fragrance of oats being threshed or fresh land being tilled with old time implements.
One of the largest displays of farming heritage around, the Pierce Old Time Threshers and the Pierce County Historical Society have sponsored this event for nearly three decades. The grounds open at 7:30 am on Saturday and 8 am on Sunday. This year’s event features Case and Cockshutt-Coop antique implements.
Don’t miss demonstrations and displays like steam threshing, a stationary hay baler, working horse demonstrations, blacksmithing and horse shoeing and lots of antique cars, tractors and farming implements. You can witness home economics demonstrations of all kinds including soap making, quilting, weaving, woodcarving and butter churning.
Don’t forget about the dog penning demonstrations, kids activities and the Northeast Nebraska model railroaders will be there with their exhibits too. Antique tractor pull starts at 5 pm on Saturday in front of the grandstand. And there will be grand parades each day at 1 pm.
Lunch is available on the grounds. For more information on the Pierce Old Time Threshing Bee, call (402) 329-4245
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MENNO PIONEER POWER SHOW, MENNO, SD
Menno Pioneer Power Show held annually at Pioneer Acres near Menno the last weekend in September. Visit www.pioneeracres.com.
(Text from Farm to Family Connection KK93 Radio Special, Thursday, Sept. 22, 2005)
On Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 24 and 25, Menno, South Dakota will have a show of power. We’re not talking about the gridiron – we’re talking about the pioneer power at their annual Pioneer Power Show, featuring a slice of life from the good old days.
Rumley-Allis tractors, the old Maytag engines and vintage Buick cars and trucks will be showcased at this year’s event, located at Pioneer Acres on the north edge of Menno. In addition to crafts, children’s games, a flea market, petting zoo, car and tractor parade and toy show, the 19th annual event features an antique tractor pull and corn cutting, binding and chopping demonstrations and a big parade. There’s a children’s pedal pull, mini-rod pull and a bale throwing contest.
Of course, each day, you can see steam threshing or plowing and an old sawmill in action. Visit the women’s display building or the steam building on the grounds that features a Murray Iron Works reciprocation horizontal steam engine of Corliss valve design complete with a 12-foot flywheel and weighing in at 12,000 lbs. The word "impressive" doesn’t do it justice.
And don’t miss the historic Hutchinson County Jail or permanent flour mill display. The kids will enjoy the barrel train and ferris wheel. Honoring old time life on the Great Plains, the annual Menno Pioneer Power Show gives the whole family a slice of pioneer life. For more information, visit the web at www.pioneeracres.com
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MIDWEST TREE MOVING, HARTINGTON, NE
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, Sept. 5, 2006)
Midwest Tree Moving, Jerry and Gerald Fischer with 16 years of experience and equipment that can move trees up to 25 feet tall. Nursery trees and tree spading. Call 1-800-354-6369.
When it comes to planting and caring for trees, Gerald and Jerry Fischer with Midwest Tree Moving at Hartington, Nebraska have the experience and the equipment for spading nursery trees of all sizes into any landscape. Jerry says Fischer’s showcase tree nurseries located near the Cedar County Fairgrounds and near their feed and farm supply store in Hartington are stocked up with all kinds of nice big trees. They have lots of quality lindens, oaks, maples, ash and hackberry trees as well as evergreens. This fall, they have a large selection of nice, big littleleaf lindens, red oaks, maples and ornamental crabapple trees with white or lavender blossoms. Jerry is especially proud of their beautiful Colorado Blue spruce trees.
Fischers offer specific trees to compliment the design of your landscape. If you want a mountain styled landscape, they now offer tall, narrow spruce trees for that setting. They can also color match beautiful, blue spruce trees, adding color and texture to your design.
If you want trees planted in a tight spot, they are able to plant large balled and burlapped trees in areas where a tree spade won’t fit.
Fischers have tree spades to move all sizes of trees including equipment to move tiny trees all the way up to trees at 12 inches diameter and more and up to 30 feet tall.
Jerry says that mulch is the key to successful tree plantings because it insulates tree roots from extreme temperature change. And the Fischers offer recycled rubber mulch – a non-degradable and non-toxic product – that works really well in all landscapes. They also market landscape edging, weed matt and attractive crushed river rock for the do-it-yourself landscaper. Their wood mulch comes mostly from ground pallets, so it is free of potential disease and pest problems. They also market a full line of species specific fertilizers, to assist with the unique nutrient needs of individual varieties.
They run their tree spades up to a 50 miles radius from Hartington. If you’d like to take a look at all the fine nursery trees grown by Jerry and Gerald or are interested in moving trees this fall, call Midwest Tree Moving at 1-800-354-6369, stop by their farm store at 503 N. Robinson in Hartington or visit the web at farmtofamily.net now powered by Avera Sacred Heart Hospital.
And remember, if you want locally grown trees in your landscape, go with the folks you know and trust like Midwest Tree Moving.
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VERDIGRE BAKERY, VERDIGRE, NE
Homemade rolls, donuts, bread and kolaches. Call (402) 668-2233.
(Text from KKYA, 93.1 FM Farm to Family Connection Radio Special, Oct. 21, 2004)
Pete Pavlik of Verdigre, Nebraska goes in around 1 am every morning to work at the Verdigre Bakery. While most folks are sawing logs, Pete is busy mixing up fresh kolaches, donuts, rolls, bread and cakes that will be sold later that morning in Verdigre and in Creighton and Orchard too. Not only do Pete and his wife Mary Pavlik make up to 18 dozen kolaches every day with fillings like apricot, prune and cottage cheese, but they regularly ship their Verdigre-made kolaches across the nation from coast to coast. During the community’s annual Kolache Days celebration in June, they might bake upwards of 500 dozen kolaches.
There’s usually folks waiting by the door when they open up each day at 7:30 am. In addition to their baked goods, they also offer daily luncheon specials like soup and maybe a roast beef or ham sandwich.
Of all the great food they prepare at the Verdigre Bakery, Pete says he likes the breads most of all. Perhaps it’s the science or art behind breadmaking that challenges Pete a little. They make white, wheat, rye and pumpernickel bread as well as hot dog and hamburger buns and dinner rolls. Local restaurants are now featuring some of Pete’s homemade bread, buns and rolls.
If they get enough requests for specialty breads, the Pavliks are happy to give them a try. They’ve been particularly proud of some of their sourdough breads including tomato and basil, Jalepeno cheese or sunflower and honey.
Folks who are planning large gatherings, weddings or other celebrations might want to take in the bakery’s open house set for Sunday, Oct. 24 at the ZCBJ hall next door to the bakery in downtown Verdigre. Pete and Mary will have available samples of their breads, rolls, donuts and other baked goods, including wedding cakes.
So if you’re searching out something homemade for a meal, drive to Verdigre and just follow your nose to the Verdigre Bakery in Downtown Verdigre or you can call Pete and Mary at (402) 668-2233.
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RIVERBANK BATHING COMPANY, YANKTON, SD
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, Oct. 18, 2007)
Mary and Dave Johnson like telling folks to be sure to wash behind their ears, because helping folks get clean is their business. They’ve been making specialized, fragrant soaps to cleanse the body and invigorate the soul right in Yankton since 2003.
They produce 65 richly-fragranced soap bar varieties made of all natural plant and vegetable oils plus cocoa butters. How about applejack and orange peel, cool peppermint or night fire. Then there’s prairie earth, sage meadow and root beer. They make up special batches of other scents by season like soaps known as sleigh ride, tropical breeze and strawberry. They offer soap bar gift sets for nearly any occasion.
Dave does a lot of the heavy work in the soap making – weighing, mixing, cooking and cutting bars. Riverbank prepares soap in small batches of 25 bars. Mary says the soap holds its scent right down to the last portions of the bar, so a 4.5 oz bar of their soap will last and last. Saponified oils make each soap bar gentle on your skin. Cocoa and Shea butters moisturize, and essential oils and fragrant blends are added as a final enhancement, to their long-lasting, super-lathering bars.
You can purchase the Johnson’s quality, locally made soap in Yankton at several retail outlets. It’s available in other stores around the state and they sell direct at events like Riverboats Days. You can call the Johnsons with your order at 605-267-7627 or at 1-866-557-5998. Visit them on the web at riverbankbathingcompany.com or farmtofamily.net, powered by Avera Sacred Heart Hospital.
Don’t forget to clean behind your ears, and be sure to use soap from Riverbank Bathing Company, handmade soaps that cleanse the body and soothe the soul.
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KAYLOR LOCKER, KAYLOR, SD
Kaylor Locker, Kaylor, SD - Homemade beef, pork and lamb, Famous Chislic. (800) 464-9648, ext. 1212.
(Text from Farm to Family Connection KKYA, 93.1 FM Radio Special, Nov. 4)
Kenny Konrad has really got something going at their business, Kaylor Lockers in Kaylor, SD, just six miles west and two miles north of Scotland. They are famous for their legendary chislic. In fact, Kaylor Lockers is one of the few local locker plants that will process lamb. And they sell chislic to lots of local taverns, restaurants and grocery stores.
Kenny says you can stop by their facility on Main Street in Kaylor just about any time and pick up chislic and homemade hotdogs and sausage, including their specialty, liver sausage.
They process beef, pork and lamb and make deer sausage as well. They do custom slaughter on Mondays and Thursdays, but anyone interested in having a farm fresh animal processed at Kaylor should call in advance to schedule a processing day.
Kenny has been in the locker business at Kaylor since 1961, so this veteran processor will work with first time fresh meat buyers, lining customers up with local families raising the animals. You can purchase whole critters, halves or quarters. Kenny said he can also help a family decide how to have their meat processed and packaged for convenience. If you don’t have room at home for all that frozen meat, they offer locker rentals too.
If you’re interested in purchasing some of Kaylor Locker’s famous chislic or other specialty meats, give them a call at 1-800-484-9648, extension 1212
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SWANSON HUNTING ACRES, NIOBRARA, NE
Swanson Hunting Acres, Niobrara, NE - Jim, Darrell and Betty Swanson, (402) 857-3794 for reservations.
(Text from Farm to Family Connection KKYA Radio Special, Nov. 11, 2004)
Jim, Darrell and Betty Swanson have been hosting hunters from across the country for over twenty years. Their Swanson Hunting Acres six and a half miles southwest of Niobrara, Nebraska, according to Betty, is where good folks meet for good hunting. That’s particularly true with Swanson’s fine accomodations including a new lodge built in a beautiful, wooded setting. Swansons offer 2300 acres of perfect habitat along the rugged Niobrara River valley near upper Lewis and Clark Lake. Pheasant, quail and chukar partridge are always abundant and the Swansons provide a dog handler with each party of three or four hunters.
Advance reservations are a must, because Swanson’s Hunting Acres is a popular spot, especially in the fall months. Their season runs from Sept. 1 to April 1 for hunting, but the lodge is open year around. Their reserved parties enjoy great hunting, good, old fashioned hospitality, food served in their own hunting lodge and lodging as well.
Be sure to call ahead at 402-857-3794 and visit with Betty about scheduling dates for your hunt.
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KSK ELK AND BUFFALO HUNTING, NIOBRARA, NE
KSK Elk and Buffalo Hunting, Kenard, Steve and Chris Kreycik at Kreycik Riverview Elk Ranch, Niobrara, NE (402) 857-3850.
(Text from Farm to Family Connection KKYA Radio Special, Nov. 18, 2004)
These days you don’t have to drive thousands of miles to recreate the days of Lewis and Clark and hunt big North American game like trophy elk and buffalo. Kenard and Steve Kreycik and the KSK Elk and Buffalo Hunting Acres at Niobrara offer hunters from around the region and across the country the hunting experience of a lifetime, traversing some of the most rugged and beautiful landscape in the state – densely wooded hills and deep canyons all within view of the Niobrara River valley. Headquartered at Kreycik Riverview Elk Ranch eight miles southwest of the Niobrara State Park entrance west of Niobrara, Nebraska, KSK guaranteed hunts offer guided hunting experiences of all kinds – black powder, archery or high power rifle.
Kreycik’s offer elk, buffalo and fallow deer hunting from their private herd, with animals of all sizes from medium to trophies. Depending on the size of hunt, Kreycik’s will provide meals for the hunting party and provide lodging at the local hotel.
KSK Hunts offers locker services for processing meat or you can purchase elk meat processed at a federally inspected facility from the ranch anytime. At the ranch gift shop, you can purchase elk and buffalo hides and skulls and elk antlers as well.
If you’d like to schedule this type of unique hunt at Kreycik’s Riverview ranch, call Kenard and Steve at (402) 857-3850 or email the ranch – elkranch@bloomnet.com.
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T.H.E. TREE FARM, BLOOMFIELD, NE
T.H.E. Tree Farm, Dan Hoppe, Bloomfield, NE, Christmas trees and wreaths. (402) 373-4866.
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, Nov. 22, 2007)
Start a family tradition. A fresh, locally grown Christmas tree adorning your home is really one of the best holiday traditions there is…and the experience of choosing and cutting your own tree is something children always remember and cherish. Dan Hoppe at T.HE Tree Farm southeast of Bloomfield, Nebraska can offer your family an opportunity to create your own holiday tradition starting with a real Christmas tree.
Dan planted his first evergreen trees back in 1987 and started selling Christmas trees from his five-acre field in 1993. Dan has always loved Christmas and operating a tree farm is just another way his family celebrates the holidays. Their tree farm offers Scotch Pines and Spruce trees.
Dan enjoys making all kinds of Christmas decorations from their greenery like 12 to 30 inch wreaths and swags as well as pinecone wreaths and other decorations. Dan supports the Bloomfield Boy Scout Troop 149 and Bloomfield FFA chapter, with members of both organizations helping clean, bundle and load trees at the farm this year as part of their fundraising efforts.
The tree farm is open Friday and Saturday, Nov. 23 and 24 from 11 am to dark and Sunday, Nov. 25 from 1 pm to dark. They are also open the following three weekends on Saturdays from 11 am to dark and Sundays from 1 pm to dark. The farm is open weekdays from 4 pm until dark by appointment only. To get to their tree farm, follow Broadway south from the main intersection in downtown Bloomfield and stay on the same road as it turns into 544 Ave. Go one mile south of town and two thirds of a mile east on 880 Road. The tree farm is located on the south side of the road. If you’d like to set up an appointment at another time or find out more about THE Tree Farm at Bloomfield, call Dan at (402) 373-4866 or (402) 640-3820. You can learn more about locally grown trees and other food and farm products by visiting the web atfarmtofamily.net, now powered by Avera Sacred Heat Hospital.
And remember, grace your home with a fresh, quality Christmas tree grown right here by folks you know and trust like Dan Hoppe at T.H.E. Tree Farm.
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SVARSTAD'S CHRISTMAS TREE FARM, IRENE, SD
Curt and Mary Svarstad and family, located two and one quarter miles east of Irene, SD. Call (605) 263-3494.
(Text from Farm to Family Connection, KKYA, 93.1 FM, Dec. 2, 2004)
Folks around Irene, South Dakota and throughout the region are really lucky this time of year, because they have the opportunity to share a special Christmastime tradition with their families. Choosing and cutting a fresh, real Christmas tree grown on Curt and Mary Svarstad’s Christmas Tree Farm a couple of miles east of Irene has made holiday memories for countless families for nearly 20 years now.
With the majority of their trees sold right out of the fields, Curt says they offer a number of popular varieties to choose from. Of course Scotch Pine are some of the most popular Christmas trees in our region, but Svarstad’s farm also grows beautiful Colorado Blue Spruce and Norway Spruce trees too.
With help from lots of family members Curt and Mary are including a whole new generation of tree farmers in their operation during the holidays, grandson Isaac, age 8, is tree shed forman and grandson Easton, age 3, is chief assistant.
They began in 1986, planting a block of 1000 trees on one acre. They’ve planted thousands of trees since then, enlarging their fields and expanding their offerings for folks looking for the perfect tree.
Svarstad’s sell landscape trees from their fields in the Spring, but right now, if you’re looking for a quality, fresh Christmas tree grown right, Svarstad’s are open conveniently every weekend right up to Christmas. They open up from noon to 5 pm on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, so you have plenty of opportunity to join in the fun and tradition at Svarstad’s tree farm.
They are located two and a quarter miles east of Irene. If you want more information, give Curt and Mary a call at (605) 263-3494.
And remember, if you want the freshest Christmas tree gracing your living room this holiday season, choose a real tree grown with care by a family you know and trust.
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LYNCH DAWGS, LYNCH, NE
(Text from Farm to Family Connection, Dec. 16th, 2004)
Lynch Dawgs, Lynch, NE - Furry little replicas of Lewis and Clark's prairie dogs. Handmade by volunteers in Lynch, Nebraska. Order online at www.lynchne.com.
Joan Faith, a veteran teacher with Lynch Public Schools in Lynch, Nebraska and her faithful crew of volunteers have been staying after school these days. For the past several months, Faith and the crew, which ranges in age from the very young to over 80 years young, have been handstuffing and stiching furry little prairie dog replicas they affectionately call "Lynch Dawgs".
When Lewis and Clark passed through the Lynch vicinity, visiting a well-known hill north of town they called the Tower, but locals know as Old Baldy, their men spent nearly a day coaxing a prairie dog out of its hole to send back to President Jefferson.
Today the prairie dogs, or "barking squirrels" as Lewis and Clark called them, are scorned by local ranchers for the damage they inflict on grazing land. But at the urging of Lynch promoter, LeRoy Purviance, Faith designed a cuddly prairie dog replica that the town could sell to raise funds for community improvement, and capitalize on their connection with the furry varmints.
Purviance says they have sold nearly 1500 Lynch Dawgs so far and volunteers continue to handcraft the critters at full steam. Faith says all the Dawgs are unique, with some fatter and others thinner, depending on who in the group is doing the stuffing.
So if you’d like the perfect Christmas gift for someone who appreciates something extremely unique, you should purchase a Lynch Dawg from the fine folks volunteering for good of their town. Purviance says Lynch Dawgs are an authentic registered Lewis and Clark bicentennial gift. Get your Lynch Dawgs by calling Purviance at 1-800-337-2706 or you can purchase them online at www.lynchne.com. And remember, this Christmas season, give your family only the best – something uniquely made with tender loving care by local hands.
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HOWARD AND JAN GRIMM, LYNCH, NE - RED CEDAR WOOD PRODUCTS
(Text from Farm to Family Connection, Dec. 23, 2004)
Howard and Jan Grimm, Lynch, NE, Red Cedar Wood Products - paneling, for woodworking, fenceposts. Call 402-569-2358.
Howard and Jan Grimm and their son-in-law, Canon LeBlanc are busy logging the pastures around their rural homes near Lynch, Nebraska. It might seem that logging and a grassland state like Nebraska just don’t seem to go together, but with growing red cedar tree forests encroaching on thousands of acres of prime grazing land, the Grimms look at cedar trees not so much as a weed, but a resource.
In the early days, the Grimms logged the hardway, with chainsaws and back breaking lifting. Today, With a skidloader and dump truck, they take to the hills and valleys around Lynch, clearing out unwanted trees and utilizing the big timber trees for special products. Howard says after they cut the big trees down, the crew clears some of the lower limbs and move the big trunks in close to home where they are processed.
They have the beautiful cedar wood milled into lumber for cedar paneling, wood perfect for furniture making and woodworking and for other products. They also market cedar wood fence posts ranging from seven to ten inches in diameter and custom cut lengths from five feet all the way up to twenty four feet.
They’ve marketed their locally cut cedar wood products all over the region, from Colorado, North Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa and South Dakota. The Grimms are making good out of something most people would discard.
You can learn more about the Grimm’s quality cedar wood products by calling 402-569-2358. And remember, if its local, it’s the best.
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M&M LOCKERS, BRISTOW, NE
M&M Lockers, Bristow, NE - Jim and Barb Korb - Beef, pork and deer custom processors. Homemade sausage and other local meat products. (402) 583-9933
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, Dec. 22, 2005)
Jim Korb started helping his father Maurice at M and M Lockers in downtwon Bristow, Nebraska when he was in grade school. Little did he know at the time, but he was carrying on a family tradition, because Maurice helped at the locker in Colome, SD when he was in grade school – so the legacy was merely being carried on by another generation.
Maurice and Marcella Korb started the locker plant in Bristow nearly fifty years ago, in 1956, so the Korb family has experience in meat processing on their side. Now Jim, his wife Barb, son Max and daughters Sarah and Adrienne help out in the business too.
They do custom butchering of beef and pork as well as deer in season, with a specialty of homemade sausage, home cured meats and other specialty cuts too. Jim says his customers recognize the high quality meat products coming from M& M Lockers and they particularly like their ring bologna and hot dogs as well as their sausage products. If you are looking for farm fresh meat, the Korb’s can help you find a local farmer you can purchase quarters, halves or the whole animal from. They can also help you decide how best to have the meat processed and packaged for convenience for your family.
The best thing about buying meat from a local locker is that you know the meat is fresh and locally grown by folks who care. M&M Lockers is located on main street in Bristow, about halfway between Lynch and Spencer, Nebraska along Highway 12 in Boyd County. You can contact Jim and his family by stopping by their store in downtown Bristow, calling (402) 583-9933 or by visiting the web at www.farmtofamily.net. And remember, if its local, it’s the best.
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MARY'S 'MAGINATIONS, ATKINSON, NE
Mary's 'Maginations - Mary Pospichal, Atkinson, NE - Custom painting saw blades, cream cans, vases and canvas originals - Sandhills scenes, wildlife and birds. (402) 482-5698.
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, Jan. 6, 2005)
With the backdrop of birds and wildlife of Nebraska’s Sandhills as her inspiration, Mary Pospichel of rural Atkinson is coming into her own as a painter. When she doesn’t have a paintbrush in her hand, she ranches with her husband Mike, caring for their family’s cowherd and ewes and lambs on their spread twenty-two miles south of Atkinson, near Chambers.
This self-taught artist has been painting for nearly six years, but she’s really devoted more time to her art now that their son and daughter have both graduated from high school. She paints Sandhills scenes and custom landscapes on nearly everything. She’s done some beautiful saw blades, cream cans and even specialized vases for wedding flowers. When she does get a chance to paint on canvas, this rancher brings the scenes she’s most familiar with – Nebraska’s Sandhills – to life.
Squeezing her painting in between ranch chores, Mary is a fast and efficient painter, but the quality of her work speaks for itself. She’s exhibited her work at regional shows in O’Neill and Elgin. If you’d like to view or purchase some of Mary’s work or if you have a custom painting opportunity for Mary, call her at home at (402) 482-5698. And remember, the most reflective and creative works are crafted by local hands.
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VERDIGRE FARM SHOW, VERDIGRE, NE
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, Jan. 10, 2008)
The 26th annual Verdigre Farm Show, one of the premiere community farm shows in the entire region, will be held Saturday, January 19 from 11 am to 8 pm. You'll find this successful and fun event at the Verdigre High School Gym at 204 2 nd Street.
Show coordinator, Kevin Randa, says their sponsoring organization, the Verdigre FFA, has played an important role in the show's success. As with each previous show, 30 or 40 Verdigre FFA Alumni have worked hard to organize and implement this year's event.
Nearly 63 exhibitors will be featured at this 2008 show. You'll be able to check out all types of farm and home related businesses. Ben Eisenhauer is the Husker star who will be on hand to sign autographs from 1 pm until the show closes at 8 pm.
Be sure to catch the skidloader rodeo in the school parking lot a 2 pm. The Lower Niobrara NRD will be ready to complete water sample testing. They will have several outdoor displays.
After you've toured the show and visited with friends and neighbors for a while, head over to the concession stand Bethel Lutheran Church will again provide for a leisurely, tasty break. Their home cooked foods will easily add to the enjoyment of your day. And don't forget to register for the hourly drawings being held by exhibitors. Beginning at 7:30 pm, grand prize drawings will be held and two bicycles, donated by the Pischelville Lodge, will be given away.
Admission to the show is free so plan to celebrate our region's agriculture industry Saturday, January 20 by attending the Verdigre FFA Alumni's annual farm show in the Kolach Capital, Verdigre, Nebraska.
For more information on the show, contact Kevin at (402) 668-2275 or (402) 668-2839. Or, visit the web at www.farmtofamily.net powered by Avera Sacred Heart Hospital.
Don't forget to pick up your share of fun this month by stopping in at the Verdigre Farm Show!
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DENIM RUGS BY JENNY LEBLANC, LYNCH, NE
Handmade, custom order by calling (402) 569-2379
(Transcript from KKYA Farm to Family Connection, Jan. 20, 2005)
From the ranching country among the rugged cedar covered ridges along the Missouri River near Lynch, Nebraska in Boyd County, Jenny LeBlanc markets her unique handcrafted rugs.
On a loom her grandmother purchased back in 1960, Jenny began making rugs about six years ago. She takes blue jeans and cuts the seams and zippers out of them. She cuts the remaining panels into strips. Jenny says she sews the strips together, end to end to make longer pieces that are rolled into balls. These are put on shuttles and started on the loom.
So the rugs she makes are all handcrafted with tender loving care, making them a perfect gift for the home.
Jenny makes rugs from 2 feet to 8 feet long and her denim rugs are washable and durable as well. She exhibits her wares at local craft shows, but the best way to order a handcrafted rug from Jenny is by contacting her at home at (402) 569-2379. Mornings are the best time to catch her. You can also reach her through email at jcleblanc@threerivers.net. And remember, if it’s locally crafted, it’s the best there is.
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HUFFY'S AIRPORT WINDSOCKS, SPENCER, NE
Gary and Karen Hoffman - www.huffyswindsocks.com (800) 218-7625
(Transcript from KKYA Farm to Family Connection, Feb. 16, 2006)
Spencer, Nebraska farmers, Gary and Karen Hoffman turned their aviation hobby into a full-time business. Huffy’s Airport Windsocks, Incorporated is flying high these days, with Gary and Karen selling their handcrafted airport windsocks and old-style welded brackets in all shapes, sizes and logos, across the country from their downtown Spencer shop and on-farm manufacturing facilities housed in a former hog barn.
Gary and Karen, who run cattle on their Boyd County farm, started their windsock business by accident. Long time aviators, they made their own windsocks for their farm airstrip. When they took their windsocks as door prizes for a flying farmers’ conference, they received a number of orders for more.
Since starting out in 1985, they’ve supplied windsocks for airports around the state and their windsocks have flown from the Harbor Patrol in New York City, for the Air National Guard in Pennsylvania to the marina at Weigand Recreation Area on Lewis and Clark Lake.
Gary says that calibrated windsocks like the ones they make tell folks more than wind direction. A properly crafted windsock can tell you wind direction and to some extent, velocity, and it can tell you if the wind is gusty or not, an essential indicator for pilots.
They sell their windsocks and brackets at aviation shows from California to Florida and points in between. They are exhibiting this upcoming week at the Helicopter Association International show in Dallas, the largest helicopter industry show in the world.
They often garner contracts from corporate businesses that purchase quantities of windsocks with their company logo for use in promotions. Gary and Karen, their children and a few employees do all the work themselves from sewing and printing logos on the windsocks to actually manufacturing their own special pattern brackets.
In spite of their volume contracts, they also custom craft windsocks for rural airstrips and backyards as well, providing technical assistance to customers looking for just the right windsock for their situation. You can call Gary and Karen at Huffy’s Airport Windsocks, Incorporated at 800-218-7625 or visit their website at huffyswindsocks.com. Learn more about Huffy’s Windsocks and other locally designed and on-farm manufactured products by visiting farmtofamily.net, now powered by Avera Sacred Heart Hospital.
And remember, if it’s crafted locally be folks you know and trust, it is the best there is!
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Dick's Country Butcher Shop, Irene, SD - Dick Sherman - Beef, Pork, Lamb and Deer in Season. (605) 263-3388.
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, Feb. 17, 2005)
Dick Sherman has a good thing going northwest of Irene. Dick’s Country Butcher Shop two miles north and a half-mile west of Irene is a popular spot for locally grown beef, pork and lamb.
Dick’s experience in meat processing pays off with quality meat products. He sells halves and quarters of course, but he also retails all kinds of specialty cuts from his shop. Lots of folks stop by for his 90-93 percent lean hamburger or his specialty homemade bratwurst or dried beef.
And Dick says there just aren’t too many places around where you can buy rollapose – an old Danish delicacy that he alone features.
Dick does custom meat processing of beef, pork, lamb and deer in season, but you want to make sure you call ahead to schedule a processing day. He can also help customers looking for locally processed meat find the cuts and packaging most convenient for their families.
Dick’s Country Butcher Shop is open 8 am to 5:30 pm during the week and from 8 am to noon on Saturdays. You can call Dick at (605) 263-3388. And remember, show your family you really care – grace your dinner table with great tasting local food you can trust.
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Creighton FCCLA Farm and Home Show, Creighton, NE - Saturday, Feb. 23, 2008
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, Feb. 21, 2008)
It's been about 17 years since students in Creighton, Nebraska's Family Career Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) chapter began hosting their community's annual Farm and Home Show. Chapter advisor, Dixie Hanefeldt was involved in that first show and says this year's show, set for this Saturday, Feb. 23 from 10 am to 3 pm in the Creighton City Hall, will offer all the fun and excitement that the community has come to expect.
As in years past, the FCCLA chapter will use funds from the show for their banquet, travel and general expenses. Nearly 30 vendors are registered for this year's show, including crafters, local service organizations, power and telephone companies, and local businesses providing goods and services for the home and farm.
There will be opportunities throughout the day to win door prizes as vendors hold hourly drawings. A number of businesses will give away grand prize drawings at the end of the show. You can get your farm and home show plans off to a warm and tasty start with the annual daylong appreciation pancake feed the Creighton Chamber of Commerce hosts in the city hall basement.
If you'd like to register for a booth or would like more information about the Creighton FCCLA Farm and Home Show, call Dixie at Creighton High School at (402) 358-3663. For more information on this show and other farm-related events, visit the web at farmtofamily.net now powered by Avera Sacred Heart Hospital. Make sure you come and support your local community and take in your share of the fun and excitement by attending the Family Career Community Leaders of America annual farm and home show this Saturday, Feb. 23 in Creighton, Nebraska.
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Waupacona Farms - Marvin DeBlauw, quality grassfed beef. Hartington, NE (402) 254-3429
(Transcript for March 3, 2005 Farm to Family)
Marvin DeBlauw of rural Hartington, Nebraska farms an area with lots of heritage. He calls his place, Waupacona Farms, named for one of the early settlements in the county and the old country school nearby where DeBlauw attended elementary grades.
Marvin has made history too – he’s one of the region’s most experienced graziers – converting much of his row cropland to grass-legume pasture from which he raises and sells his premium grassfed beef.
Farming three miles north and five and a quarter miles east of Hartington on 886 Road, Marvin has utilized intensive rotational grazing for more than twenty years, that is moving his cattle regularly to fresh pasture paddocks and allowing grazed paddocks a rest period.
In the 1990’s, Marvin transitioned from a conventional dairy operation to a grazing beef herd, marketing his special, great-tasting drug and hormone free grassfed beef directly to local customers.
Recent studies show that grassfed beef is high in Vitamin E and in heart healthy and cancer fighting Omega-3 fatty acids and conjugated linoleic acids, the good fatty acids in food.
Because it is lean, Marvin says that you need to slow-cook grassfed beef for meat that is tender and juicy. He likes preparing roasts for instance by cooking them in the oven with a little salt and pepper at 250 degrees for four hours. When he grills his grassfed steaks and burgers, Marvin likes to place a piece of tin foil under the meat on the grill, to keep the juices and maintain moisture.
Marvin sells his Waupacona Farms beef by halves, split quarters, split eighths or the whole critter. All of his animals are processed at the USDA facility in Wausa, Nebraska. His customers can order their beef through Marvin and pick up their meat after processing at the Wausa Lockers or you can purchase meat directly from Marvin off the farm.
Order today by calling Marvin at (402) 254-3429. And remember, show your family you really care – grace your dinner table with great tasting local food, because if you know your farmer, you know your food.
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Wausa Farm Show - (402) 586-2156
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, Jan. 31, 2008)
Northeast Nebraska's town with Swedish roots, Wausa - will host their third annual Farm and Home Show this Saturday, February 2 in the Wausa downtown Community Auditorium. The Farm and Home Show runs from 9 am to 2:30 pm. Everyone attending will find many things to see and do.
In addition to a variety of vendors that supply nearly everything you might need for the home or farm, there are also hourly drawings and food on hand. To kick off the event, coffee and rolls will be served in the basement of the auditorium from 8:30 to 10:30 am.
The Wausa Community Club.will be on hand throughout the day to provide a variety of tasty foods in the auditorium basement. FBLA(Future Business Leaders of America)will have a slave auction at the Farm and Home Show at 1pm.
If you have questions or would like more information on the Wausa Farm and Home Show, contact Herb Bengston at (402) 586-2156. For more information on this show and for transcripts, audio clips, wellness tips and a directory of local food producers and family farms and businesses, visit the web at farmtofamily.net powered by Avera Sacred Heart Hospital.
And don't miss this opportunity to support your community and enjoy all the fun at the Wausa Farm and Home Show this weekend at the downtown Community Auditorium in Wausa, Nebraska.
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Bloomfield Bakery, Bloomfield, NE - Homemade baked goods of all kinds, including lots of specialty items. Call 402-373-2343.
(Transcript from KK93 Farm to Family Connection, Apr. 21, 2005)
Deland and Pam Reynolds know when it’s time to make the donuts and the cookies, cupcakes, pies, sweet rolls and bread because they’ve been operating the Bloomfield Bakery at 104 N. Broadway in Bloomfield, Nebraska since 1983.
The bakery in Bloomfield is an institution in Knox County because it’s been operated continuously since the 1920’s. Hometown folks and visitors from around the region have come to know all the wonderful baked goods the Reynold’s make every day.
They also bake angel food cakes, regular white and wheat bread and a number of specialty breads and dinner rolls. They make three sizes of sandwich buns as well as their own pancake mix and everyone’s favorite, homemade noodles. And it’s all made from scratch, without preservatives, for that authentic, homemade flavor their customers have come to enjoy.
The annual Knox County Fair in Bloomfield each August is extremely busy at the bakery, because the Bloomfield Bakery provides the church lunch stands on the fairgrounds with buns and pies each day. Many of their products are also used at school functions, fundraisers, family reunions, promotions and Bar-B-Ques around the region. They also deliver within the city limits of Bloomfield.
The bakery is open for lunches daily with a noon special and homemade soup in season.
The Bloomfield Bakery is open Monday through Friday, from 5:30 am to 4:30 pm and on Saturdays from 5:30 am to 1 pm. You can get more information on the bakery at Bloomfield, Nebraska by calling the Reynolds at (402) 373-2343. And remember, If you want food with integrity for your family, grace your table with local food made from scratch by folks you know and trust.
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Sheila's Country Gardens, Hartington, NE - Locally grown flowers, perrennials, shrubs and custom baskets and planters. Call 402-254-6379.
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, Apr. 28, 2005)
Sheila Schmidt loves her job. Since 1989, with help from her husband Kenny and their children, Chris, Kelly, Dana, Diane and Rachelle – she has built her on-farm plant nursery business from the ground up.
Sheila’s Country Gardens, located three miles south of Hartington, Nebraska on Highway 57, is perched on top of a rolling hill overlooking a beautiful little valley.
It’s the perfect place for her greenhouse and gift shop. It’s also been the perfect place for raising their children. Sheila says they started the nursery business to save money for college for their children and as a way to stay on the farm and be around her family.
Besides, the farm is a perfect backdrop for beautiful flowers. Sheila says she works hard to grow plants from high quality seeds and she carries a large selection of new varieties each spring. She’s been planting and designing custom hanging baskets and planters for sixteen years.
Over the years Sheila has also custom grown hard to find plant varieties for customers. She transplants about 100,000 plants each season, so she’s a veteran with a green thumb.
Sheila says she really enjoys working one on one with customers, helping them design their landscape and planters. She’s also proud of the fact that she grows nearly all of her plants right there on the farm.
Some of her favorites this year include wade petunnias and osteo daisies. She promises to help customers with care and maintenance tips too.
Sheila’s Country Gardens and gift shop are open from April through December. Her hours are Monday through Saturday from 10 am to 6 pm and 1 pm to 5 pm on Sundays. She also has convenient evening hours on Wednesdays when she is open until 8 pm. They are located three miles south of Hartington. Learn more about Sheila’s Country Gardens by calling her at 402-254-6379 or by visiting the web at farmtofamily.net. And remember, If you want plants grown right in this area with tender loving care, buy your landscape plants from a local nursery you know and trust.
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St. James Marketplace Heritage Fest, St. James, NE
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, Sept. 27, 2007)
St. James Marketplace Heritage FestThe beautiful little village of St. James, Nebraska was the center of settlement and activity for local pioneers when it was the first Cedar County seat 150 years ago. The settlement has changed over the years, but St. James is again a bustling place, thanks to several local farm families and over sixty talented regional vendors who make St. James Marketplace something special.
Violet Pinkelman, Vicki Koch, Mary Rose Pinkelman, Louise Guy and Jeanette Pinkelman and their families have restored and reopened the long since closed parish schoolhouse as a marketplace for local farmers and artisans to sell their locally grown and hand crafted goods.
Set atop a grassy knoll in the architecture of a Spanish mission, the Marketplace – listed on the National Register of Historic Places - has become a special location for travelers and local residents to find unique things they can’t find anywhere else.
The big event for the Marketplace season is Heritage Fest set for this Sunday, Sept. 30. On Heritage Fest Day, St. James is transformed back to the old days of huge community picnics with nostalgic games, heritage demonstrations and exhibits and great food. Demonstrations open at 11 am. Watch demonstrations ranging from hand corn picking, grinding and grading, cream separating and operating a hand apple cider press. There will be a hand log sawing contest and skillet toss, which are always crowd pleasers. The kids can join in the three-legged race, sack races, apple eating and watermelon seed spitting contests. There will be an apple press, home made ice cream and butter, candle making, bread making, fine needle work and weaving and spinning wheel demonstrations with yarn and buffalo hair as well. And be sure to visit Annie’s Indian Artifacts display and the every popular antiques room.
Of course many of St. James regular vendors will be there that day to talk about their products and explain their techniques. Heritage Fest is like stepping back in time with a community of friends.
The Marketplace is located among the rolling fertile farmland at St. James, just two miles east of the Wynot spur along the Outlaw Scenic Byway, Highway 12 in northern Cedar County. It’s just 12 miles west of the Vermillion-Newcastle bridge. They are open weekends from 10 am to 5 pm from early May until just before Christmas and Heritage Fest is set for Sunday, Sept. 30. Get more information by visiting the marketplace on the web at www.stjamesmarketplace.com or at farmtofamily.net, powered by Avera Sacred Heart Hospital.
Don’t forget to get in on the good life by visiting the St. James Marketplace in beautiful downtown St. James, Nebraska.
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Diane's Greenhouse, Fordyce, NE - 402-357-3754
(Transcript from Farm to Family Connection, May 1, 2008)
Diane's Greenhouse, owned and operated by Diane Dickes, is practically in your backyard, just one mile west of Fordyce, on 888 Road. When you visit, you'll be treated to the wonderful sight of a wealth of quality flowers and vegetables that Diane offers every year.
If you're searching for hanging baskets, Diane offers more than 1,000 ready-made choices. If you prefer to design your own, you can select from among a wide variety of plants. With the help of her husband, Greg, and their children, Diane offers nearly 400 different perennials, a huge assortment of annuals, trees and shrubs and her favorite shrub roses. Be sure to check out the hardy and easy-to-grow Knock-out Roses that bloom all summer long.
To fill your need for vegetable plants, check out the tomato varieties and other vegetable selections that Diane has on hand.
Along with the quality greenhouse items Diane offers, she's pleased to work with customers to design a flower garden or landscape design. She works with a simple drawing developed from photographs and recommends the flowers, shrubs and trees that will bring your garden space to life. She's sold on mush