2016 East Central District Farm Family of the Year – Chris & Nesha Smith

In this day and time, you don’t see many first generation farmers as it’s a hard business to get into, but Chris and Nesha Smith have defeated the odds. They purchased their farm in 2004 and have worked diligently to build their cattle herd and instill in their 10-year-old daughter their same passion for agriculture. […]

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Homegrown Hero: Saline County Vet Brings Military Discipline to Farming

From Battlefields to Farm Fields ~ Veteran Signs Up for Farm Duty Damon Helton is a veteran farmer. Correction: Damon Helton is a veteran and a farmer. Helton is a decorated veteran of the U.S. armed forces with five deployments between Iraq and Afghanistan, but he’s a relative newcomer to agriculture. Still, watching Helton zoom […]

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The Bee Man Abuzz

“Want to see a bee sting me?” This is and isn’t a serious question. Beekeeper and farmer James Rhein of Mountain Home is rarely serious and he loves nothing more than telling jokes and amusing stories. However, he is not kidding about having a bee sting him in order to illustrate a point. “I’ve been […]

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Keith and Jill Forrester family, Northeast District Farm Family of the Year

The Keith and Jill Forrester family of Tyronza (Mississippi County) is the Northeast District Farm Family of the Year. They own and operate Whitton Farms where they raise a variety of crops on 200 acres, including 25 varieties of tomatoes, four varieties of melons, asparagus, strawberries, blackberries, peas and other miscellaneous vegetables. Not only do […]

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