Neighbors

Inspired by his father and former ag teachers, Josh Baker knew he wanted a career in agriculture. The Baxter County native decided to go to college and major in ag education. Completing his Bachelor of Science degree at Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia in 2003, Josh applied for a teaching position at Mountain Home High School, his alma mater. It was an exciting opportunity for Josh because he would be working with one of the ag instructors who had been his inspiration. Josh said, “I had two great ag teachers. One was Jacquie Albright – she’s still a teacher here in our junior high – and Roger Steele, my other ag teacher. He’s now retired. I actually taught with him the first two years. He got me started and then retired two years later.”

Rich history, strong family values and respect for those that came before are standards in the Walton Jefferson family.

Most people have seen uprooted trees; whether the result of a bulldozer or a spring storm, it is not an uncommon sight. When a tree is uprooted, we miss the shade or the scenery, but we also soon learn that the missing tree leaves a hole. No matter how a landowner tries to fill in the hole, it is always noticeable for years afterward. The same is true when a member of the community passes away.

Why do Jerrod and Julie Ball of Exeter, Mo., raise Boer Meat Goats? “Because someone fell in love with the babies,” said Jerrod as he glanced over to his wife, Julie. But it is evident that the sweet kids are just one reason for using goats in farm diversification. The goats have also become an important 4-H project for their son, Jason, 11, who enjoys training and showing both doelings and meat wethers. Last year Jason and his older sister, Jessica, showed three doelings in several area shows.

Hope comes in many different forms for many different people but probably four-hoofed is not most folks’ first notion when the word is mentioned. Horses of Hope, a therapeutic riding program, located just south of Buffalo, Mo., is working hard to change that perception.

As all farmers know, it’s been hard to stay down on the farm during these past few years of recession. Frank and Christy DePriest of Midway, Ark., have learned that diversification is the key.

A famous writer named Thomas Wolfe once wrote a renowned novel entitled "You Can’t Go Home Again." Greg and Cheryl Satterfield, who currently live in Harrison, Ark., intend to prove him wrong. Greg and Cheryl met in a horticulture class at the University of Arkansas and then lived in Tulsa, Okla., and were later transferred to New Jersey. After three years in New Jersey, the couple decided to move back to the area, partly to get out of the more urban areas and partly to escape the high cost of living. They also had children and felt they needed to provide the children with a better lifestyle.

Unlike so many people who live here, Philip and Connie Swan have no history of family or previous ties to the Ozarks. Phil said, “I had always heard that the Ozarks was a nice place to retire. Plus we were both ‘country’ to start with and didn’t want to be in the city anymore.” With encouragement from some friends who knew about the area, Connie went online and started looking. They decided to check out the Ozarks prior to their retirement. They ended up in Branson, Mo., and started looking around with the help of a real estate agent. The Lead Hill area of Boone County, Ark., caught their eye. The first piece of property they saw was the 33 acres they bought.

Ricky Jenkins believes that you have to sell quality if you are going to sell anything. He won’t sell any of his livestock that he wouldn’t keep for himself. He is quick to cull out of his herds anything that doesn’t quite meet his standards, and they are pretty high for good reasons.

A beautiful herd of Brangus cattle can be seen north of Monett, Mo., at the Vaughn homeplace.  Their home and farmland are positioned next to the original Vaughn homestead and the family business, Vaughn Trucking Company.