Betsy Huber, State Master
From the Master's Desk
Now that summer is over and our Camps, Family Festival, and Ag Progress Days are behind us, it’s time to look forward to the 135th State Session in Williamsport, October 6-8th.
State Session
The deadline for resolutions is past so I hope you submitted them to the State Office before August 24 so they can be considered this year. The resolution process is very important because it is how our State Grange policy is developed. We can’t lobby for your interests if we don’t know what those interests are.The second step in the resolution process is committee review. The four standing committees will meet on September 19 to begin their review and discussion of the resolutions you have sent in for this year. Informational topics for that day will be milk pricing policy, country of origin labeling, and a review of legislation by George Wolff.
The Host Pomona Granges have been hard at work for a year planning for our arrival in Williamsport. The registration deadline is coming up quickly, so please stop right now—send in your ticket orders and call a hotel for a room reservation. The State Session is the highlight of the Grange year and we need all the family to come. We want to see you there!
National Convention
I want to encourage you to attend the National Grange Convention November 13-17, 2007, in Reno/Sparks, Nevada at the Nugget Hotel and Casino. Details are on the website www.nationalgrange.org and in this issue. There is lots to see and do, lots of activities for Youth and Juniors, and helpful workshops for Lecturers, Membership Chairmen, and anyone interested in increasing their abilities. This year there will be an exhibit room of the three best entries from every Grange state, in addition to the Evening of Excellence on Thursday night when talent, sign a song, and public speaking winners show their talents. It would be great to have a big group of Pennsylvanians in attendance! Airline prices are pretty reasonable right now, so think about a trip to the “Wild, Wild West.”
Other Activities
Last month I had the pleasure of attending the Lycoming Pomona Picnic, held at Eagle Grange #1. My mother and I enjoyed a very pleasant afternoon of fellowship with about 40 Grangers, including Past Master John Scott and Helen, and of course Past Master Gordon Hiller and Mary.I also traveled to Washington DC for a couple 100 degree days at the National Grange Executive Committee meeting.
The State Grange History Committee met to make final preparations for receiving all your old Grange records at State Session this year. Remember, we will accept all records from closed Granges, and records up to 1975 from active Granges. Records include minute books, roll books, and membership records—anything with names in them, not Treasurer books or financial records. Please call the State Office if you plan to bring these records to Williamsport so we can be prepared to haul them back to the Office.
Our booth at Ag Progress Days was a success as always. Thank you very much to the volunteers who helped us staff the booth for the 3 days. Lots of people stopped by to ask about the Grange in their areas. I had the opportunity to testify at the House Agriculture committee hearing on agricultural education and careers (see testimony following this article). It was amazing that 19 State Representatives attended this hearing! What a great chance to spread the Grange’s thoughts on ag ed and the limitless opportunities for careers in agriculture.
The rest of August will be spent visiting several fairs and promoting Grange membership there. I hope you took advantage of the opportunities at your fairs to talk Grange and sign up some new members. The Grange is the best organization in the world, but no one will know that if YOU don’t tell them!
If your Grange needs help in organizing a membership campaign or just reviving your own members, please call me at the State Office. Carl Meiss or I will be happy to visit and help your Grange to be more successful. Don’t wait until it’s too late, call now!
See you in Williamsport next month!
PENNSYLVANIA STATE GRANGE TESTIMONY
BY
BETSY E. HUBER
PRESIDENT
BEFORE THE
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
AGRICULTURE AND RURAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
AG PROGRESS DAYS HEARING
AUGUST 15, 2007Good Morning. My name is Betsy Huber and I am the President of The Pennsylvania State Grange, a family fraternal organization that is dedicated to the betterment of the American quality of life through community service, education, legislation and fellowship. Currently, the Grange represents approximately 15,000 Pennsylvanians across the Commonwealth and is the oldest agricultural and rural advocacy organization of its kind in the United States. And, although you may not know this, you do not have to be an active farmer to be a member of the Grange.
The Grange was organized in 1867. One of the main purposes of the Grange was to educate the farmer. Indeed, one of the specific objectives in our original Declaration of Purposes states, “We shall advance the cause of education by all means within our power. We recognize that education is a continuing process. We encourage all to continue their education through adult education classes, by continued reading, observation, and such other methods as may be available.”
As you have heard from previous speakers, there are tremendous career opportunities associated directly and indirectly with agriculture. The practicing farmer depends very heavily on suppliers, manufacturers, and scientists. Farming methods themselves have changed dramatically over the years, creating a whole spectrum of new and diversified career paths. We have come a long way from the scythe and flail to the McCormick Binder and the old fashioned thrashing machines that moved from farm to farm…to the combines that were specialized for small grain and to existing combines that can be programmed for all different types of small grain, corn and soybeans. Today’s modern combine contains yield monitors that transfer information into the combine’s computer and then to a disk which becomes a key instrument in today’s precision agriculture. That disk relays information on soil tests divided into 3-foot squares in the farmer’s field and feeds that information into the computer of a fertilizer spreader truck which then, depending on the map details of low yield or high yield areas, can determine and spread the appropriate amount of nitrogen, phosphorus and potash required to maximize and balance the entire operation. This information can contribute to substantially increased yields for the farmer at the same or lesser costs for the fertilizers.
In addition to the farmer, this one example requires the expertise of mechanical engineers, computer science and programming personnel, the scientists who perform the soil tests, and manufacturing skills to develop the complex computer/mechanical combination of the fertilizer spreader trucks. When people think about agriculture as it used to be, this one example shows how complex it now is and how many new opportunities are available. The USDA reports there will be 1000 more jobs available in agriculture than there are graduates to fill them this year.
In precision agriculture, genetics are playing and will play an increasingly important role in breeding grain for specific purposes. For example, corn altered genetically to produce a higher sugar content will be extremely valuable to the ethanol industry because fewer bushels of corn will be required to produce more gallons of ethanol due to the higher sugar content. Corn breeders are also producing corn with higher phytates for use as feedstock for the monogastrous animals (poultry and swine). Genetically engineered enhancement of grain has greatly impacted hog production. Fifty years ago it took in excess of four pounds of grain fed to a hog to produce a pound of pork. Today, because of improved genetics in the animal, improved nutrition, and improved housing conditions, it requires approximately 2.7 pounds of grain to produce a pound of pork. Fifty years ago it also took twelve weeks to produce market-ready broilers. Today it takes half that time due to improved genetics and nutrition. Here again, the nutritionist, the heating/air conditioning engineer for the animal housing units and the animal geneticist are very important contributors to agriculture.
The long and short of this whole issue is that agriculture today involves far more than what many people think of as farming. Career choices are as diverse as healthcare, science, business, manufacturing, mechanical engineering, genetics, animal husbandry, etc. While opportunities are extremely broad and getting broader, the various educational curricula available play a key role in the future efficiency, productivity and profitability of all agriculture-related careers. A great example is the veterinary assistant course that has been very successful in Dauphin County and will be duplicated in Lancaster County this fall and probably in other states in the future. All of the Dauphin graduates are going on to further education, a fact that will certainly help ease the shortage of large animal veterinarians in years to come.
The Marketplace for the Mind website is extremely valuable in getting career information out to students as well as agricultural information out to teachers in all areas of the state, urban as well as rural. This website provides scientifically sound information, not inflammatory misinformation. The Grange favors maintaining adequate funding in the state budget for this very important resource.