By James Dean
Black Hawk helicopter pilot Ben Groen found himself constantly tending to unreliable fences when he began to farm as a hobby on his 24-acre property near Fort Drum in upstate New York. Problems with a post or an electrical short could invite one of his 1,200-pound Scottish Highland bulls to stray into a neighbor’s pasture or trample his own yard.
A solution presented itself when Groen enrolled in Northern New York Veterans in Agriculture (AgVets). The program, run by Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) Jefferson County, helps active-duty and veteran service members explore the field of agriculture.
Then nearing retirement from the Army as a major and battalion logistics officer, Groen spent weeks at Centerdale Farm with owner David Hawthorne, an AgVets mentor and fellow combat veteran who raises beef cattle. Groen admired Hawthorne’s five miles of high-tensile-wire fencing and found a broader model he could apply to Groen Family Farms.
“Everything about the experience, I was learning and enjoying,” Groen said. “I thought, this is what I want my place to be like in five or 10 years.”
Source : cornell.edu