“Stress for farmers and ranchers isn’t new,” says Becky Kopp-Dunham, a licensed independent clinical social worker and farmer herself.
Abbey Messer and her husband, Marty, who is a KEM Electric Cooperative lineworker, both enjoy the outdoors, having grown up on farms and ranches.
The heart of the NDSF are the 4-H, FFA and open class exhibits vying for the top prize, Korslien says.
“We try offering a great lineup of entertainment. Once you get on grounds, there are so many things to do that are free.
When agriculture became mechanized and gas-powered tractors replaced animal power, that changed. Energy became an expense.
Henry Bajebo, a Liberian refugee, has endured similar tragedy. Bajebo watched his father die at the hands of a rebel soldier.
“What’s going on?” I asked. And then I listened. Her problems were not new. She’d been wrestling with these same issues for years.
