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CapitalPress.com
Friday, June 26, 2020
People & Places
Cowbelles promote cattle ranching
By JULIA HOLLISTER
For the Capital Press
EMPOWERING PRODUCERS OF FOOD & FIBER
Established 1928
LaGRANGE, Calif. —
Stand aside. The 50 women
of California’s Mid Valley
Cowbelles are on the move
promoting beef and educat-
ing the next generation of
consumers.
Whether their riding group
is appearing on horseback
during a community parade
or members are presenting a
lesson to a class at a local
high school, the Cowbelles
volunteer their time and
efforts to promote ranching
and the beef industry.
“We founded our Belles
about five years ago to sup-
port cattlemen,” said vice
president Pat Shepherd.
The coronavirus out-
break has put the group on
the sidelines for a while,
but they pledge to get back
in the saddle once public
appearances are approved.
“Unfortunately, our plans
for the next eight months
are canceled because of
the COVID-19 pandemic,”
Shepherd said. “Later in
June we had planned a meet-
and-greet for our scholar-
ship winners. This virus has
really stopped our Ag in the
Classroom and beef promo-
tions, too.”
One of the group’s favor-
ite projects is Ag in the
Classroom, she said. The
Capital Press Managers
Joe Beach ..................... Editor & Publisher
Western
Innovator
MID VALLEY
COWBELLES
Julia Hollister/For the Capital Press
Left to right are Mid Valley Cowbelles members Carol Kenyon, Johanna Kiernan, Pat
Shepherd, Candy Peterson and Judy Elam. Their organization supports and promotes
the cattle industry and beef.
goal is to educate students
about the beef industry.
Other educational events
are also offered.
“Our members attend
many Ag Venture field trips
during the year to teach stu-
dents about nutrition and
how we care for our cat-
tle,” according to the group’s
website. “There are about
16,000 third-grade students
at these field trips.”
There are also five Ag
Days celebrations that draw
over 3,000 third-graders.
Each year the Belles offer
$5,500 in scholarships to
five area high school seniors
who want to go into the beef
industry as a career. Recip-
ients’ grades, FFA activi-
ties, community projects and
other efforts are considered.
The Belles began as a
way for women in the cat-
tle industry and advocates to
get together. They assist in
the activities of the Califor-
nia CattleWomen’s Associa-
tion, California Cattlemen’s
Association and the Ameri-
can National CattleWomen.
The membership area
encompasses Mariposa, San
Joaquin, Stanislaus and
Merced counties.
Their volunteerism takes
them into the kitchen, too.
The group raises money by
catering events with home-
made menus for organiza-
tions around the region.
For her work with the
Cowbelles,
Shepherd
received the California Cat-
tleWomen Award for Beef
Educator of the Year.
The Cowbelles riding
group takes part in local
parades and rodeos as a
mounted unit. They pass out
brochures and donate beef
for school classes, reaching
over 8,000 students.
“I think the Cowbelles
are a very important part of
our agricultural industry,”
said Tom Orvis, govern-
mental affairs director for
the Stanislaus County Farm
Bureau. “Coming from
ranch backgrounds, they are
Organization: 50
members promote cattle
ranching in four Califor-
nia counties
Area: Stanislaus, Mari-
posa, San Joaquin and
Merced counties
Occupations: Califor-
nia cattle ranchers and
advocates
Quote: “To teach the
public the truth about
beef production, farm life
and that beef is good for
the body.”
among on the best ambassa-
dors for the beef industry.
They never miss an oppor-
tunity to reach out to the
public to educate the public
and promote beef.
“They have been work-
ing with local schools and
kids for years teaching them
that there is more to a cow
than steak and hamburgers.”
Drive-thru corn stand a hit with consumers
By JUDY L. BEDELL
For the Capital Press
PORTERVILLE, Calif.
— Each year starting in June,
Gisler Farms is the talk of
Tulare County, Calif.
Customers old and new
count down the days to the
opening of the drive-thru
cornstand that the family
farmers are famous for. And
when it opens each day, cars
line up for blocks to purchase
the freshly picked sweet yel-
low and white corn, which is
sold in baker’s dozen bags of
13 ears for $7.00 a bag.
Farmers Dave and Kim
Gisler love that Gisler Farms
Sweet Corn Drive-Thru has
become a community tradi-
tion that so many look for-
ward to each summer.
In the early 1970s Dave’s
parents, Leo and Helen Gisler,
decided to open a corn stand
in Porterville.
“When their three kids
Judy L. Bedell/For the Capital Press
Irene Andrade says she enjoys sorting and selling sweet
corn at Gisler Farms and is following in the footsteps of
her four brothers and sisters who have also spent their
summers working for the Gislers.
went off to college there was
a break until Dave and I got
married and started it up again
in 1986,” said wife Kim as
they went about setting up the
stand for the day’s business.
“We pick the corn daily and
usually sell out around noon or
early afternoon. If we do have
any left at the end of the day,
we donate it in the community.
I love seeing our customers
come back year after year, and
then we always get new ones,
too,” explained Kim.
“And, we try to stay open
until the Fourth of July but it
just depends on the heat and
its effect on the corn,” added
Kim.
Once the corn is picked
and sorted, it is loaded onto
trailers and driven into town
about five miles away. The
trailers are backed into the
stand and the selling begins.
In addition to the corn, if
customers get to the stand
early enough, they can also
purchase vine ripe tomatoes,
onions and squash.
With the COVID-19 sit-
uation, customers were wor-
ried that the stand would not
open, but the way it is set
up, it pretty much already
met all of the social distanc-
ing requirements. Custom-
ers drive up to the stand and
are greeted by a friendly staff
member who asks how many
bags they want of which type
of corn. The corn is pre-pack-
aged so there is very little
wait time and then the corn
is placed in the vehicle by an
employee.
Customers can also walk
up to the stand and follow the
directions and markings to
maintain the required 6 feet
of social distancing.
Gisler Farms is a favorite
summer job for area youths,
with brothers and sisters
joining the team from year
to year. They open the drive-
thru stand mid-June, which
works out great as their crew
is out of school or college for
the summer.
Irene Andrade is the
youngest of five children in
her family. All have worked
a summer job at the Gisler
stand.
“It is a fun job. We get
here about 6 a.m. and start
sorting the corn and then head
in to the stand at 8:30 a.m.
and then it just takes off. We
have customers coming all
day until we run out. We stay
really busy,” said Andrade.
SW Idaho crop-sign program takes break in 2020
By BRAD CARLSON
Capital Press
Roadside signs that iden-
tify many of the approxi-
mately 100 different crops
grown in Canyon County,
Idaho, are absent this year.
The joint agribusiness
committee of the Caldwell
and Nampa chambers of com-
merce suspended the program
due to COVID-19 impacts,
representatives said.
Since 2004, committee
volunteers have placed the
signs near farm fields along
high-traffic roads as a form of
agricultural education.
Canyon County has had
a crop-sign program in one
form or another since the
early 1980s.
“It’s disappointing from
the standpoint that we’ve
always done this, and a lot
Brad Carlson/Capital Press
From left, agribusiness committee members Darrell
Bolz, Stephen Parrott and Samantha Ball at Caldwell,
Idaho, on June 17.
of people appreciate that we
do it,” said Darrell Bolz, a
committee member who is
a retired University of Idaho
Canyon County Exten-
sion agent and former state
legislator.
COVID-19 restrictions in
March, April and May dis-
rupted scheduled planning
meetings as well as a new
effort to involve FFA and 4-H
members, said Stephen Par-
rott, a Nampa-based agricul-
tural lender who chairs the
committee. School closures
affected the outreach to FFA
and 4-H.
Members also expressed
concern about social distanc-
ing — five or more teams of
two usually spend a day driv-
ing the roads and placing
signs, he said.
The committee works on
agricultural promotion and
education efforts including
the Canyon County Farm
Family of the Year recogni-
tion program, participation in
a vocational agriculture advi-
sory committee for a local
high school and ag-related
tours and events.
“The committee’s goal
is to educate about and pro-
mote agriculture in Canyon
County,” Parrott said.
He said the commit-
tee aims to involve FFA and
4-H in the crop-sign program
next year. Committee Secre-
tary Samantha Ball, UI Can-
yon County livestock and
small-acreage extension edu-
cator, said the crop-sign pro-
gram provides free informa-
tion that is important and can
pique further public interest.
“We try to hit as many
crops as possible on the
routes we cover,” Bolz said.
Signs often are placed over
the Memorial Day weekend,
depending on weather.
The committee doesn’t
have a sign for every crop
grown in the county because
some aren’t grown next to
major roads and farmers’ crop
selections vary from year to
year, he said. And some of the
signs don’t detail variations
of the same crop, like corn
grown for grain versus seed.
Parrott said the committee
over the years has added signs
for crops that were fairly new
at the time, such as teff, turf
grass and grapes.
TUESDAY, JUNE 30
Snake River Pest Manage-
ment Tour: 8:30 a.m. Univer-
sity of Idaho Aberdeen Research
and Extension Center, 1693 S.
2700 W., Aberdeen, Idaho. Potato
weed-control trials to be featured.
Participants to drive their own
vehicles to tour stops and adhere
to various COVID-19 safety prac-
tices. Three Idaho pesticide appli-
cator recertification credits to be
offered. Information: phutch@
uidaho.edu, 208-397-4181.
HAACP Online Course: Online.
Hazard Analysis and Critical Con-
trol Points (HACCP) is an interna-
tionally recognized method of
identifying and managing food
safety-related risk. It can provide
customers, the public and regu-
latory agencies assurance that a
food safety program is well man-
aged. Participants will receive an
International HACCP Alliance seal
and certificate. This online course
will help identify hazards asso-
ciated with raw materials and
process steps and assign con-
trols. Contact: 208-863-4259, wil-
liammullane@techhelp.org Web-
site: https://techhelp.regfox.com/
haccponline2020
FRIDAY, JULY 24
16th Annual AgForestry Golf
Tournament: 9:30 a.m.-6 p.m.
Apple Tree Golf Course, 8804 Occi-
dental Ave., Yakima, Wash. Join
the AgForestry network of alumni
and supporters for an afternoon of
golf, camaraderie and supporting
future AgForestry Leaders. Con-
tact: Melissa Skomer-Kafton, 509-
926-9113, melissa@agforestry.org
Website: http://agforestry.org/
golf-tournament-2020/
THURSDAY-FRIDAY
JULY 30-31
Soil Health Institute Annual
Meeting (virtual): 10 a.m. The
two-day virtual meeting will offer
28 speakers on advancing, measur-
ing and adopting soil health strat-
egies. It will also address related
economics, policies and programs.
Those wanting to attend must reg-
ister. Website: https://soilhealthin-
stitue.org
TUESDAY, AUG. 11
7th Annual Ag World Golf
Classic: 11 a.m. Canyon Lakes Golf
Course, 3700 W. Canyon Lakes
Drive, Kennewick, Wash. The Ag
Jessica Boone ............ Production Manager
Samantha McLaren ....Circulation Manager
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World Golf Classic supports the
Ronald McDonald House Chari-
ties of the Inland Northwest. Con-
tact: 509-765-0698 Website: http://
www.agworldgolf.com/golf
THURSDAY, AUG. 13
7th Annual Ag World Golf
Classic: 11 a.m. The Links at Moses
Pointe, 4524 Westshore Drive NE,
Moses Lake, Wash. The Ag World
Golf Classic supports the Ronald
McDonald House Charities of the
Inland Northwest. Contact: 509-
765-0698 Website: http://www.
agworldgolf.com/golf
SATURDAY SEPT. 19
Small Farm School 2020:
Clackamas Community College,
Clairmont Hall, 19600 S Molalla
Ave., Oregon City, Ore. Small Farm
School is a full-day event with
hands-on workshops and class-
room sessions for beginning and
small-scale commercial farmers.
Subscribe to the mailing list for
updates. The school is a collabo-
ration between OSU Extension,
Clackamas Soil and Water Con-
servation District and Clackamas
Community College. Fee: $75 Con-
tact: Clint Taylor, 979-820-3980 or
clint.taylor@oregonstate.edu
FRIDAY-SATURDAY
SEPT. 25-26
Pacific Northwest Christmas
Tree Association Trade Show:
Sheraton Portland Airport Hotel,
8235 NE Airport Way, Portland. This
is the annual meeting and trade
show of the Pacific Northwest
Christmas Tree Association. Con-
tact: Angie Smith, 503-364-2942,
smith@pacwestcom.com Website:
www.pnwcta.org
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Index
Dairy .......................................................9
Markets .................................................13
Opinion ...................................................6
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