OTTAWA — Funding shortfalls for farm safety programs and research challenges safety initiatives, delegates were told during the Canadian Agricultural Safety Association’s annual conference Oct. 7-9. Dr. Jim Dosman of the Canadian Centre for Health and Safety in Agriculture said funding for groups like CASA needs to be enhanced, not cut. “The lack of funds […] Read more
Stories by Karen Morrison
Program aims to keep farmers at work
Accessibility tools | Canadian farmers injured on the job can access funds to help get them back in the fields
OTTAWA — Canadian farmers injured on the job can now apply for up to $10,000 to support their safe return to work. The Canadian Agricultural Safety Association kicked off the application phase of its Back to Ag Program in Ottawa Oct. 8. Dean Anderson, agricultural program manager with Workplace Safety and Prevention Services in Guelph, […] Read more
Artist enjoys life between a rock and a hard face
Permanence of stone | Sculptor finds satisfaction in knowing his creations could survive for hundreds of years
Most farm kids enlisted for rock picking throw them into the bush, but not stone sculptor Stephen Yettaw. He often sees things in the rocks and turns them into finely chiseled sculptures. “You just need a little imagination.” The 43-year-old’s fascination with sculpting dates back to finding rocks on his family’s market gardens near St. […] Read more
Good prices put ‘romance back in cattle business’
Holistic approach | Cattle producer loves cattle and grass and works to improve both through breeding and management
VERMILION, Alta. — Connie Smith loves the Alberta country home she shares with fiancé Brian Chrisp, and both enjoy the busy lifestyle of their respective careers. The couple, who has been together for five years, met at Smith’s Riverside Hair Design, where Smith cut Chrisp’s hair. She helps wherever needed at Misty Hills Charolais near […] Read moreAt Home video highlights local food production
Farmers need to let consumers know they’re doing a good job raising the food they eat, says cattle producer Donna Jackson. “It’s food we ourselves feed our families,” she said. She and her husband, Carman, raise purebred Charolais and Sim-mental on the Inglis, Man., farm they share with their five daughters. A video of the […] Read more
Couple enjoys community, rural lifestyle
Way of the future | The Grykuliaks choose to raise natural beef for the price premium
MYRNAM, Alta. — Kim Grykuliak revels in the simple life on her Spring Creek cattle farm. “It’s a good life, especially for raising a family,” she said. “I work every day and do jobs. The kids are with me and we’re running around. We can play with the kittens and puppies. It’s simple. It’s nice […] Read more
Alberta farm couple serves community, industry
Political involvement, volunteerism | Next generation takes active role while parents pursue goals, hobbies
WAINWRIGHT, Alta. — Ken Murray uses a four-wheel drive tractor to push silage into place at Eastern View Farms as his nephew, Ty, dumps load after load of silage freshly cut by Ty’s cousin, Curtis, working in an adjacent oat field. Ken’s brother, Terry, surveys all of this from the cab of his truck, knowing […] Read more
Organic system worth effort for Alta. family
Accelerated fertility | Intensive grazing restores life in cattle pastures damaged by past droughts
CLANDONALD, Alta. — In the world of certified organic farming, the Axe family considers itself pro-life. “We want life in the soil to pop,” said Tim. He, his wife, Maighread, and her mother, Ann McCormack, share a farming life and Catholic faith. They’re also part of EAT Food for Life, an association of small family […] Read more
Life lessons play key role in 4-H club’s longevity
HAMIOTA, Man. — 4-H leader Keith Bridge reluctantly donned a bedpan hat and choir gown for the McConnell 4-H Beef Club fashion show. He was taking part in the Manitoba club’s awards nights, said longtime leader Margaret Boyd. Margaret said the performance was a showstopper, but it almost didn’t happen after Bridge initially refused to […] Read more
Former convent piece of heaven for addicts
LEIPZIG, Sask. — Sister Zita Merkowsky was a nun with the Sisters of Notre Dame convent in Leipzig when the towering red brick building was shuttered in 1969. She told Ardyth Clark, the building’s current owner, that the sisters went to the chapel before they locked the doors on the Catholic boarding school. “She said […] Read more
