Hard work rewarded | Life lessons learned ‘in the muck’ when everyone contributes
GLASLYN, Sask. — Fostering entrepreneurship in their children is important for Michael and Charmaine Hicks.
“Money talks,” said Michael. “I don’t want the kids to be slaves on the farm, so I’m making sure in some way they’re compensated for their work.”
The Hicks have a system that seems to be working for them and their four children: Jonah, 14, Andrew, 12, Russell, 10 and Sophia, 5.
It revolves around answering the question, what is a paying chore?
“It’s the things that happen with the business aspects of the farm. You don’t want to pay them to sweep the floor and things like that, but I want them to see, when you’re out in rubber boots in the muck and doing something that’s not a lot of fun, there’s a reason for it. They’re making a dollar at it,” he said.
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“Farm kids have a little bit of a unique life in that they live in and on the family business. They’re a living part of it.”
Before driving the three oldest children to Glaslyn Central School, where she teaches full time, Charmaine admitted she sometimes has to remind them about feeding and watering the animals and gathering the eggs.
“I think chores are quite important for them to have some responsibility,” she said.
Added Jonah: “It doesn’t take long, but it has to be done.”
The boys also make their own school lunches.
The Hicks’ home quarter, which is 10 kilometres north of Glaslyn, was a wedding present from Michael’s father, Daniel, in 1993.
Daniel’s place, a few kilometres away, is the hub of the family’s farming operation.
Michael, along with his father and brother, Adam, combine their resources and abilities to seed 3,500 acres. They also raise a herd of purebred Charolais and a herd of Charolais cross.
Their farm’s land base has continued to grow, and they recently incorporated their grain operation into Hicks Brothers Farms.
Each partner has areas of expertise. Michael operates the sprayer, his brother and father do the seeding, his father combines and Michael hauls grain.
Even young Jonah has started driving tractor to make bales of hay and straw. He keeps track of his hours.
“You get more done working together, said Michael.
While farming has been booming recently, Michaels remembers much tougher times not that long ago.
“Until the last five years, farming was awful. It was just an absolute peasant’s existence. There was always lots of fresh air and nice scenery, but it was awful and everybody around here had their spouse working.”
While he’s grateful for the recent economic turnaround, he ponders how long it will last.
“It’s in the back of my mind all the time. Don’t get too high here buddy.”
His farm is at the northern end of the Saskatchewan’s grain belt, near the forest.
“We have lots of short growing season problems here,” he said.
“Things can happen overnight and what you banked on is gone. Around here it’s hard to get super big because of our short growing season.”
For now, the Hicks’ lives revolve around the children. While they know it’s too soon to know their children’s real intentions and career choices, they can see the two older boys involved with farming.
“They think like farmers,” said Michael.
“There’s a wonderful opportunity if they want to do it. I think some of the boys will, but I don’t want to pressure them. I want them to go get an education and learn something and I want to make the farm a place they want to come back to. I don’t want it to be anything to do with guilt, or persuasion or anything like that.”
Charmaine agreed: “If they feel they still want to come back and farm, that’s great, but I think they need to see other things besides just what’s here.”
An upcoming farm auction has the boys counting the money in their bank accounts and seeing what they can afford.
Jonah and Andrew plan to try their hand at bidding to get more cattle of their own.
“The boys are getting their money together, wondering if they can go to the sale and buy a bred cow or a cow and calf to increase their herd,” their father said.
“That’s the kind of thinking I like.”
