Belter, Henry

Interview Audio

Interview Transcript

 

Property of the Salisbury Association, Scoville Memorial Library, Salisbury, Conn. 06068

Not an oral history interview

 

 

ROTARY TALK GIVEN BY HANK BELTER 1976.

 

 

 

GOOD AFTERNOON. HAMLIN ASKED ME TO SAY A FEW WORDS ABOUT MY LIFE ON THE FARM, SO I WILL START, I GUESS, RIGHT FROM THE BEGINNING.

 

 

I ALWAYS LIVED ON A FARM, I WAS BORN ON ONE. I MOVED TO LAKEVILLE 34 YEARS AGO, SO I’VE BEEN IN THIS TOWN FOR QUITE A WHILE IN 1941, I GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL AND WAS OFFERED AN ATHLETIC SCHOLARSHIP TO CORNELL. I ALSO SIGNED A BASEBALL CONTRACT WITH THE NEW YORK GIANTS THAT SAME YEAR. ALSO, THAT SAME YEAR, MY FATHER BECAME SERIOUSLY ILL. MY BROTHER AND J HAD TO CARRY ON WITH THE FARM. AT THAT TIME WE HAD ABOUT ONE HUNDRED ANIMALS OF WHICH ABOUT FORTY-FIVE WERE MILKING AND WE SENT ABOUT TEN CANS OF MILK, THAT’S FORTY QUARTS (WE USED TO SEND IT IN MILK CANS IN THOSE DAYS), AND WE RECEIVED FIVE CENTS A QUART FOR OUR MILK, SO YOU CAN SEE HOW THINGS HAVE CHANGED A LITILE BIT. AND ABOUT THE SAME TIME, 1941, WAS THE TIME WHEN THE SECOND WORLD WAR STARTED. WE WERE AUTOMATICALLY PUT INTO, VVHAT THEY CALLED, CLASS 2-C, WHICH WAS AGRICULTURAL DEFERRMENT.

 

 

I WANT TO COMPARE A LITILE BIT OF WHAT WE HAD THEN AND WHAT WE HAVE TODAY. TODAY WE OWN 2 FARMS, ONE THAT WAS PURCHASED IN 1950. WE HAVE ABOUT 350 ANIMALS, WE MILK ABOUT 15P DAILY, YEAR-ROUND. ON OUR FARM IN 1941, WE HAD TWO TEAMS OF HORSES, WE DID EVERYTHING WITH HORSES. WE HAD ONE OLD TRACTOR. TODAY WE HAVE TEN TRACTORS, RANGING IN VALUE FROM $1000 TO OUR BIG ONE, WHICH WOULD COST US TODAY ABOUT $22,000. WE PRODUCE ABOUT 3500 QUARTS OF MILK A DAY WHICH AMOUNTS TO ABOUT 2 MILLION POUNDS A YEAR. THAT WOULD COMPARE TO ABOUT 1 QUART FOR EVERY MAN,

WOMAN AND CHILD IN SALISBURY, YEAR-ROUND. I WAS CHECKING IN THE SUPERMARKET, I SAW MORRIS THERE THIS MORNING, AND THE AVERAGE GALLON OF MILK IN THE SUPERMARKET IS ABOUT $1.60. WE RECEIVE ABOUT 80 CENTS, ABOUT 20 CENTS A QUART. WE GO THROUGH ALL THE PROCESS OF GETIING THE MILK TO THE PLANT. ALONG WITH THESE TEN TRACTORS, SOME OF THE EQUIPMENT WE USE TODAY, WE HAVE: TWO PIPE LINES. A PIPE LINE THAT THE MILK GOES DIRECTLY INTO THE LINE, RIGHT INTO THE BIG STORAGE TANK. IT’S NEVER TOUCHED BY HUMAN HANDS. ALL DONE BY MACHINE. WE HAVE TWO OF THOSE, ABOUT $12,000 A PIECE. AND A WHOLE LINE OF EQUIPMENT WHICH NEVER WAS EVEN DREAMED OF YEARS AGO. TO REPLACE ALL OF THIS EQUIPMENT THAT WE HAVE TODAY, WOULD BE WELL OVER $150,000.00. COMBINE, HAYBINE AND SO FORTH, SO A LOT OF MONEY INVESTED. WE TRY TO RAISE ALL OF OUR OWN REPLACEMENTS. WE RAISE ABOUT 40 HEIFERS A YEAR, SO THAT MEANS WE HAVE TO HAVE THREE GROUPS. IT TAKES ABOUT 2 112 YEARS FOR A CALF TO BECOME A COW AND GET INTO THE HERD. SO THAT MEANS WE HAVE 40 THAT ARE 2 YEARS OLD, 40 THAT ARE A YEAR OLD, AND ABOUT 40 THAT ARE YOUNG. WE HAVE A LOT OF YOUNG STOCK AROUND.

ON OUR TWO FARMS WE HAVE ABOUT 100 TILL1ABLE ACRES. THIS IS QUITE IMPORTANT, WHAT I’M GOING TO TELL YOU NOW. 100 TILLABLE ACRES ON EACH PLACE THAT WE CAN USE, BUT WE FARM ABOUT 500 TILLABLE ACRES. SO THAT MEANS THAT WE USE AN AWFUL LOT OF OUTSIDE LAND, AND THIS IS TRUE WITH ALL THE FARMERS THAT ARE IN BUSINESS TODAY. THEY’VE GOTIEN SO BIG THAT THEY NEED A LOT MORE LAND. A LOT OF LAND THAT WAS TAKEN OUT, IS BEING ABSORBED BY THOSE THAT HAVE GOTIEN BIGGER. WE HAVE 13 DIFFERENT PEOPLE, LAND OWNERS, THAT WE USE LAND FROM IN OUR TOWN. ON OUR ROAD ALONE, FROM LIME ROCK TO SALISBURY, THERE USED TO BE 4 ACTIVE FARMS, AND NOW THERE IS ONLY ONE, OURS. WE USE ALL THE LAND PRACTICALLY FROM LIME ROCK TO SALISBURY PLUS WELLS HILL AND A FEW OTHER PLACES. WITH THESE PEOPLE THAT WE HAD RENTED LAND, WE’VE DONE THIS FOR OVER THIRTY YEARS WITH

SOME OF THEM, WE’VE NEVER HAD A WRITTEN AGREEMENT, IT’S ALWAYS BEEN ORAL, AND TO THIS DAY, I’LL HAVE TO KNOCK ON SOME WOOD, WE’VE NEVER HAD PROBLEMS WITH ANY OF THESE PEOPLE. THEY’VE ALWAYS BEEN GOOD TO US AND WE’VE BEEN GOOD TO THEM.

 

NOW I WANT TO MAKE A LITTLE COMPARISON ON SOME OF THE CROPS. WHEN WE STARTED IN IN THE ’40’S, TEN TON OF CORN TO AN ACRE WAS PRETTY GOOD. BUT NOW WITH MODERN FERTILIZERS AND NEW TECHNIQUES, WE CAN GROW ANYWHERE FROM 20-25 TONS TO THE ACRE. THAT’S DUE TO ALL THESE NEW TECHINQUES THAT WE USE. NOW, I DON’T KNOW WHETHER THAT’S GOOD OR BAD, USING ALL THIS FERTILIZER. ALL KINDS OF QUESTIONS. FOR OUR BUSINESS TODAY, WE PLANT 200 ACRES OF CORN. OF THIS 200 ACRES, WE GET OVER 4000 TONS. 4000 TONS IS AN AWFUL LOT OF CORN. TO COMPARE THAT, YOU PEOPLE HAVE PROBABLY SEEN THAT SILO ON MY PLACE THAT WAS LEANING, AND LEANING AND FINALLY WENT, WHICH WE HADN’T USED THAT FOR ABOUT TEN YEARS. BUT IF WE PUT ALL THE CORN WE PRODUCE TODAY, WE WOULD HAVE ABOUT 30 SILOS. WE PUT UP ABOUT 25,000 TO 30,000 BALES OF HAY EACH YEAR. WE GET SOMETIMES, THREE CUTTINGS OFF SOME OF THE FIELDS, SOME OF THE NEWER ONES. AND ALONG WITH THIS, WE PURCHASE ABOUT 600 TONS OF GRAIN to BALANCE THE RATION FOR OUR ANIMALS. THAT’S ABOUT $130.00 PER TON. IN OTHER WORDS, OUR GRAIN AND FERTILIZER BILL EACH YEAR IS WELL OVER $100,000.00. TO COMPARE SOME OF THESE THINGS, JUST THREE YEARS AGO, OUR GRAIN WAS ABOUT $70 A TON AND OUR FERTILIZER WAS ABOUT $70, IN THAT RANGE. THE FEED HAS DOUBLED AND THE FERTILIZER HAS TRIPLED. I DON’T KNOW IF I MENTIONED THIS OR NOT, BUT DISEL OIL WAS ABOUND 18 CENTS A GALLON SOMEWHERE IN THE ’40’S, LOWER 40’S. GASOLINE WAS AROUND 30 CENTS AND IT’S IN THE 50’S TODAY. WE BROUGHT A TRACTOR IN 1951 WITH A BRAND NEW MOWER ON IT FOR A THOUSAND DOLLARS. THAT SAME TRACTOR, WITH THE SAME HORSEPOWER,WITH MAYBE A FEW MORE HYDROLICS TODAY WOULD COST $9000.00. UNBELIEVABLE.

NOW I WANT TO TALK A BIT ABOUT OUR BREEDING PROGRAM. IT STARTED …. THIS IS IN OUR DAIRY BARN. WE STARTED ARTIFICIAL BREEDING ABOUT 1950. OUR HERD AVERAGE WAS ABOUT, OUR MILK HERD AVERAGE WAS THAT TIME WAS 10,000 POUNDS PER ANIMAL. TODAY IT’S WELL OVER 15,000 POUNDS. THE COWS THEMSELVES HAVE IMPROVED IN WEIGHT SINCE THIS TIME, 1950 TO TODAY, FROM AN AVERAGE OF 1100 POUNDS TO THEY AVERAGE 1600 POUNDS PER ANIMAL. ONE OF THE REASONS THAT WE BREED ARTIFICIALLY IS THAT IF WE HAD ORDINARY BULLS, WE WOULD HAVE TO HAVE 3 MATURE ONES TO TAKE CARE OF THE HERD. AND AGAIN, THAT WOULD MEAN 3 AT 21/2 YEARS, 3 LIITLE ONES AND SO ON. WE WOULD HAVE TO HAVE 9 AROUND ALL THE TIME. YOU ALWAYS HAVE TO WATCH OUT FOR DISEASES SPREADING FROM ONE TO ANOTHER. WITH THIS ARTIFICIAL BREEDING WE HAVE OUR PICK FROM ANY PROVEN BULL IN THE NATION AND THERE ARE 100’S OF THEM. WHAT I MEAN BY A “PROVEN BULL” IS THAT THEIR DAUGHTER’S HAVE PRODUCED A LOT MORE MILK, MORE BUITERFAT AND IN A LOT OF DIFFERENT WAYS THE QUALITY OF THE ANIMAL IS BEITER THAN THE DAM. (THE MOTHER). THESE HAVE ALL BEEN PROVEN SO THAT USUALLY THE CHANCE OF USING THIS ARTIFICIAL INSEMINATION IS NO CHANCE TAKEN. IT COSTS US ABOUT $9 A SERVICE. IT COSTS ABOUT $2000 A YEAR TO BREED ALL OF OUR ANIMALS, WHICH IS NOT VERY MUCH. WE DON’T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT’A BULL GEITING OUT OR CHASING SOMEBODY OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT.

 

I WOULD LIKE TO/TALK ABOUT OUR HEALTH PROGRAM. OUR HERD IS TESTED EVERY YEAR FOR ALL KINDS OF DISEASES. BLOOD DISEASE, TUBERCULOSIS. THERE IS A NUMBER O~ DIFFERENT THINGS. PUR BUILDINGS, OUR MILK ROOM IN INSPECTED 3 OR 4 TIMES A YEAR. WE BELONG TO A CO-OP, IT’S CALLED YANKEE COOP, WHICH IS ABOUT 5000 MEMBERS, ALONG THE WHOLE NORTHEAST. BY BELONGING TO THIS CO-OP MEANS THAT WE HAVE INSPECTORS FROM 4 DIFFERENT STATES. EACH INSPECTOR FROM EACH STATE THINKS THAT THEIR SET RULES ARE THE RIGHT ONES, SO WE HAVE TO COMPLY WITH WHAT THEY SAY.

 

 

I’M GOING TO TELL YOU ABOUT A FEW INCIDENTS. IN OUR MILK ROOM WE HAVE THE STANDARD, FLUORSCENT LIGHTS, THAT OUR STATE TOLD US WE SHOULD HAVE. TWO BIG ONES. THIS ONE STATE INSPECTOR CAME IN AND SAID WE HAD TO HAVE 8 EXTRA FLOOD LIGHTS PUT IN. TWO ON EACH TANK, TWO OVER THE SINK AND TWO WHERE THE DOORS ARE. SO WE PUT THEM IN. IT COST US ABOUT $125.00 AND NO BODY HAS EVER USED THE LIGHTS YET. THAT’S THE TRUTH. IN OUR MILK ROOM WE HAVE A GREAT BIG, LARGE DOUBLE STAINLESS STEEL SINK IN WHICH WE WASH ALL OF OUR EQUIPMENT WHICH IS DONE AUTOMATICALLY WITH OUR PIPE LINE AND OUR MILK PAILS AND SO FORTH AND SO ON. WELL, THIS ONE STATE INSPECTOR SAID THIS WASN’T GOOD ENOUGH, WE WOULD HAVE TO INSTALL ANOTHER LITTLE SINK OFF TO THE SIDE WITH HOT AND COLD WATER, SOAP, TOWELS, THE WHOLE WORKS. THAT’S BEEN SITTING THERE FOR TEN YEARS AND NOBODY HAS USED THAT. I’M TALKING ABOUT TEN YEARS AGO NOW, THIS OTHER FELLOW SAID WE HAD TO HAVE AN ALUMINUM STORM DOOR AND ALUMINUM WINDOWS. I DIDN’T EVEN HAVE THAT IN THE HOUSE. WE PUT THEM IN, MY WIFE SAW THAT AND OF COURSE, I HAVE THEM IN MY HOUSE NOW.

 

 

 

I WANT TO TALK A LITTLE ABOUT WHAT WE GET PAID. WE ALWAYS SEE IN THE PAPER WHAT THE FARMER GETS FOR HIS MILK. WE ALWAY5 SEE THE TOP AMOUNT. I’M GONNA TELL YOU SOME OF THE THINGS YOU DON’T SEE. IN THE FIRST PLACE ABOUT 60% OF OUR MILK IS PUT INTO CLASS ONE. THE OTHER 40% IS PUT INTO CLASS TWO, THAT MEANS ICE CREAM, CHEESE, REDI-WHIPS WHATEVER OTHER PRODUCTS THEY SEE FIT TO MAKE OR CAN USE AT THAT TIME OF THE YEAR. WE’RE PAID 10 DOLLARS A HUNDRED. OR SOMEWHE;RE’S AROUND 21 CENTS A QUART. THAT’S WHAT WE ACTUALLY GET. OUT OF THAT WE PAY, WE ARE THE ONLY PEOPLE IN BUSINESS THAT I KNOW, THAT PAYS THE FRiGHT BOTH WAYS. WE PAY FOR FREIGHT ON EVERYTHING THAT COMES IN, MACHINERY, FERTILIZER, FEED. WE ALSO PAY THE FREIGHT ON ALL THE MILK THAT GOES OUT. WE PAY ABOUT 40 CENTS PER HUNDRED TO GET OUR MILK FROM OUR FARM TO THE PLANT. FOR OUR FARMS IT

 

AMOUNTS TO ABOUT $10,000 PER YEAR. WE ALSO HAVE IN THIS YANKEE MILK OPERATION WHAT IS CALLED A REVOLVING LOAN. THIS IS ABOUT 800/0 OF OUR CHECK, THEY USE FREE. EACH YEAR THEY TAKE ABOUT $1200. THEY USE THIS FOR 5 YEARS AND AT THE END OF 5 YEARS WE GET $1200 BACK, INTEREST FREE. THEY ARE USING IT FOR 5 YEARS AND THERE ARE 5000 MEMEBERS, SO THINK OF HOW MANY MILLIONS OF DOLLARS THAT IS THAT THIS OPERATION USES.

ARE YOU UNDERSTANDING ANYTHING I’M SAYING?

 

NOW I’M GOING TO TELL YOU THE THINGS WE TRY TO DO:

 

 

 

THE FARMER IS A VETERINARIAN, WE DO MOST OF OUR OWN VETERINARY WORK. WE’VE LEARNED THROUGH THE YEARS TO USE THE SHOTS AND THINGS. BUT WHAT WE DON’T DO IS SOMETHING INTERNALLY, THAT WE CALL A VET FOR.

WE’RE PLUMBERS. WE ALWAYS TRY TO GET OUR PIPES TO WORK. WE’RE AN ELECTRICIAN, WE DO A LOT OF OUR OWN ELECTRICAL WORK. PROBABLY ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS IS THE MECHANIC. WE DO ALL OUR OWN REPAIR ON ALL OUR MACHINERY. WE HAVE A BIG SHOP, IT’S KIND OF DIRTY, BUT WE HAVE ALL KINDS OF TOOLS. THE ONLY THING WE CAN’T DO IS IF THE MOTOR ON A MACHINE NEEDS WORK, WE SEND THAT OUT. WE ARE A CARPENTER. TALK ABOUT CARPENTRY, THIS LAST FLOOD, THIS LAST HURRICANE WE HAD, I WASN’T OUT STANDING IN MY FIELD, I WAS OUT SWIMMING IN MY POND. THE WHOLE VALLEY WAS FILLED

WITH WATER. AND ALONG WITH WATER COMES WORK. WE HAVE TWO BIG WOODEN BRIDGES THAT WE DRIVE OUR TRACTORS OVER AND IT WASHED BOTH OF THEM OUT. IT WASHED OUT ALL OF OUR LINE FENCES·OUT. THAT ‘MEANS WE HAVE TO REPLACE THOSE AND CUT SOME BIG TIMBERS FOR THE BRIDGE. IT TOOK US NEARLY A WEEK TO REPAIR THE DAMAGE THAT THE WATER HAD DONE. WE ARE PAINTERS. WE DO MOST OF OUR OWN PAINTING. AND ANOTHER THING THAT IS QUITE IMPORTANT TO US IS THE

 

WEATHER. WE CAN PROBABLY PREDICT THE WEATHER AS GOOD OR LOTS OF TIMES, BETTER THAN SOME OF THE FORECASTS THAT WE GET FROM HARTFORD. WE’VE LEARNED THROUGH THE YEARS TO ALMOST KNOW WHAT IT’S GOING TO BE. AND THAT’S VERY IMPORTANT TO US.

 

 

 

GETTING BACK TO THAT HURRICANE THAT WE DIDN’T REALLY GET. ABOUT 200 ACRES OF CORN. WE STOOD UP ALL THAT NIGHT, OR WE WERE AWAKE ALL THAT NIGHT. WE COULD HAVE LOST THAT WHOLE CROP, YOU KNOW HOW HURRICANES TWIST. 200 ACRES OF CORN IS WORTH ABOUT $80,000. IF A HURRICANE GETS IN THERE AND TWIRLS IT AROUND THE MACHINE JUST CAN’T CUT IT. IT WOULD BRING UP DIRT AND MAKE A TERRIBLE MESS.

 

 

 

WE ALWAYS HAVE TO BE ON THE ALERT FOR ANY KIND OF DISASTER. LIKE THE HURRICANE. ARMY WORMS, ROOT WORMS, ALFALFA WEEVIL, BLIGHT. WE HAVE ALL KINDS OF THINGS. THE ARMY WORM A FEW YEARS AGO GOT INTO SOME OF OUR FIELDS AND HAD TO BE SPRAYED BY AIRPLANES. NO OTHER WAY TO STOP IT. THEY TOLD ME DOWN IN THE CENTER PART OF THE STATE ABOUT THESE ARMY WORMS. THEY CAN BORE A WHOLE FIELD IN ABOUT TEN HOURS AND THEN THEY MOVE TO ANOTHER. THEY WENT ACROSS THIS ROAD AND THERE WERE SO MANY OF THEM AND THERE WAS A SLIGHT GRADE, THE CARS COULDN’T GET UP. THEY HAD TO HAVE THE FIRE COMPANY COME OUT AND WASH THE ROAD DOWN SO THE CARS COULD GET BACK AND FORTH. THERE WERE MILLIONS OF THEM. AND THE SAME WITH THE ALFALFA WEEVIL. IF WE HAVE A LONG DRY, SPELL, THESE THINGS SEEM TO FLORISH AND THEY CAN RUIN A WHOLE FIELD IN NO TIME AT ALL, IN TWO OR THREE DAYS. WE KEEP BUYING A NEW HYBRID CORN EACH YEAR THAT THE SCIENTISTS KEEP AHEAD OF THE BLIGHT. WHAT THESE~ BLIGHTS DO, THEY COME AROUND THIS TIME OF YEAR, THEY WILL STOP THE CORN FROM MATURING AND WILL TURN A WHOLE FIELD FROM GREEN TO BROWN IN ABOUT 24 HOURS. IT GETS BRITTLE. WE ALWAYS HAVE TO WATCH OUT FOR THAT.

 

THERE ARE SOME ADVANTAGES TO BEING A FARMER. IN FACT, THERE ARE A LOT. WE ARE A CLOSE FAMILY UNIT. THE BOYS, I HAVE 4 BOYS, MY BROTHER HAS 2. MOST OF OUR LIVES WE ARE WORKING TOGETHER, WE SEE OUR SONS AND THEY SEE US. THE SAME AS THE DAUGHTERS AND THE MOTHERS. NOT TRUE IN A LOT OF FAMILIES. THE FAMILY KNOWS WHAT HARD WORK IS, THEY KNOW WHAT A DOLLAR IS WORTH. IT KEEPS THEM OFF THE STREET, IT KEEPS THEM OUT OF MISCHIEF MOST OF THE TIME. THEY SEE A LOT OF HAPPINESS, THEY SEE A LOT OF SADNESS THEY SEE A LOT OF HEARTBREAK. WE NEVER TAKE ANYTHING FOR GRANTED. MR. PARKER CAME DOWN AND TOOK A PICTURE OF US STANDING IN OUR CORNFIELD A FEW WEEKS AGO AND HE REMARKED HOW GOOD IT WAS. WE TOLD HIM RIGHT THEN, WE SAID WE NEVER SAY HOW GOOD ANY OF OUR THINGS ARE, YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT WILL HAPPEN, AND SURE ENOUGH THE WEEK AFTER WE COULD HAVE LOST OUR WHOLE CROP. THE SAME WAY WITH OUR DAIRY ANIMALS. IF YOU HAVE A PARTICULARLY NICE ANIMAL THAT HAS GROWN, AND THIS HAPPENED TO ONE OF MY CHILDREN, HE RAISED A COW TO BE A BEAUTIUL COW AND WOKE UP ONE MORNING AND IT WAS DEAD. IT WAS A BLOW TO ME, BUT YOU CAN IMAGINE WHAT A BLOW IT WOULD BE TO A 16 YEAR OLD BOY. WE HAVE A GOOD LIVING. WE ARE OUR OWN BOSSES MOST OF THE TIME. WE WORK HARD AT TIMES AND WE PLAY AT TIMES. I PLAY PROBABLY MORE THAN MY BROTHER. WE PRODUCE A LOT OF OUR OWN FOOD. OUR FREEZERS ARE FULL EVERY YEAR.

 

 

 

I WANT TO GO BACK A LITTLE BIT TO WHEN WE STARTED. ANYONE WHO HAS BEEN TO THE AMISH COUNTRY IN PENNSLYVANIA, THAT IS THE WAY WE USED TO LIVE WHEN WE WERE GROWING UP. WE NEVER BOUGHT ANYTHING. WE HAD A FEW CHICKENS, WE HAD A FEW PIGS, WE HAD A FEW ANIMALS. WE GREW OUR OWN PRODUCE AND HAD OUR OWN SMOKEHOUSE. MY MOTHER EVEN MADE OUR OWN SOAP AND EVEN MADE SOME OF OUR CLOTHES. IT ANYONE EVER GOES TO THE AMISH COUNTRY, THAT’S THE WAY WE LIVED. ONE FARMER HELPED THE OTHER AND THAT’S THE WAY IT WAS. IT’S NOT LIKE THAT ANYMORE.

THE TWO FARMS THAT WE OWN, CERTAINLY COULDN’T HAVE SURVIVED; WE COULDN’T HAVE HAD ALL THESE ANIMALS AND MACHINERY IF IT WASN’T FOR OUR CHILDREN. THEY WORKED HARD. IN RETURN, I HAVE ONE SON WHO NOW OWNS ONE OF THE BIGGEST FARM IN VERMONT. I HAVE A SON WHO IS A CIVIL ENGINEER, I HAVE A DAUGHTER WHO IS A LANGUAGE TEACHER, I HAVE ANOTHER SON WHO IS IN HIS THIRD YEAR OF COLLEGE AND ANOTHER SON WHO IS IN HIS SECOND YEAR OF COLLEGE.

 

 

END