• Home
  • about jp
  • media kit
  • policies/what flies
    • Privacy Policy
  • contact janice
  • Blog
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube

Grounded Communications LLC

  • Consulting
  • Speaking
  • Training
  • Content
  • Food & Farm
  • Media & Interviews

02/21/10

“Friendly” Competition that Yields Results for the Community

After talking to Ray Prock and Jeff Fowle for months through twitter, I finally met the dairyman and rancher in January and it surprised all of us as we seemed to be dear friends for years.  The two of them put such incredible time and thought into growing their communities on twitter still that it leaves me in awe.  But it also makes me laugh. 

To say Jeff and Ray are competitive is an understatement.  They are great friends who will point out who tweeted a comment from a meeting they are both in first or who has had the ability to connect with more people through twitter.  Both of them are nearing the 10,000 follower mark.  In fact, both seem to be likely to hit that mark during Food Check Out Week.  And both have announced they will celebrate that accomplishment with contributions of food to people in their immediate communities.  I love it!

The two of them focusing on giving back to their communities make me want to follow each of them 5 times!  Ray and his family will spend time cooking for residents of a nearby Ronald McDonald House Charity (he wrote a short blog post on it) and Jeff will donate a hundred pounds of beef from his ranch to a local program that helps feed senior citizens.

While that is linked to Food Check Out Week, everyday I seem to hear about what some of the farmers I follow on twitter are doing to make their communities better.  For instance:

  • Earlier this weekend, a both of young farmers and ranchers helped stock a food pantry by packing pallets of food for a chairty while they held a meeting in Tulsa.  Will Gilmer tweeted several photos of the work between his own work on the project.  You can get to the photos through his twitpic page.
  • On Saturday, members of the Ag Relations Council (waiting anxiously for the site redesign) including my friend Mace Thornton, built a fence for someone who’s husband is deployed.
  • On Friday as I talked to Mike Haley, I learned he was actively involved in the leadership of his local humane society.  And he supports it financially as well.
  • Regular mentions of calls for volunteer fire departments seem to interrupt the regular lives of farmers like Steve Tucker and Troy Hadrick.
  • Darin Grimm helps out on the board of a local private school.

And the list could go on for days!  So I’m enjoying stepping back to look at the number of peoples lives they make better, whether that is by sharing information online, growing the food that other of us purchase in grocery stores and restaurants, or by doing volunteer work in their communities.  The thousands of followers that Ray & Jeff havce each built is a drop in the bucket for the millions of us who benefit by having farmers focused on others.  And on this Sunday morning, it seems I should certainly take time to thank a farmer.  I’m betting there will be plenty joining me really soon whether they pop up online or not, especially the folks benefitting from this friendly competition.

By the way, if you are a farmer who volunteers in your community, I’d love to add you to my thank you list!  Just let me know!

Related


food// Food & Farm// XDated

« Top 10 Reasons to Watch This Video of Bboy Climbing a Coconut Tree
#FCOW aka Food Check Out Week? What’s that? »

Comments

  1. Tinkerbell says

    February 21, 2010 at 2:48 pm

    Guido,

    Congratulations! I am happy for your achievement. Let us continue to strive to spread the positive message of agriculture and share in our mutual support of local humanitarian efforts. Have a blessed day!

    By the way, 25,000 is the next milestone!

  2. Michele Payn-Knoper says

    February 22, 2010 at 9:13 am

    Delighted to see both Guido and Tinkerbell are vying to spread the ag love through SM!

  3. mulberry5 says

    February 22, 2010 at 3:00 pm

    great article, wonderful to hear that folks out there are working to keep their communities alive and good job to you for giving recognition to them!

Schedule a Consult

The Podcast Connecting Food & Farm

RSS Get Grounded On:

  • Growing Corn in Iowa, Dave Walton is Not The Stereotype You May Hear
  • Sweet Potato Farmer Todd O’Neal Is Feeling the Love as Sweet Potatoes Grow in Favor
  • Not a Stereotypical Cranberry Farmer But Destined to Join the Family Business
  • Cranberry Recipes Tested on Farm and in the City
  • Turkey Farmers Are Deep Into the Holiday Rush
  • Growing Sugar & Baking Cookies is the Sweet Life

RSS Recent Posts — Hundred Percent Cotton

  • Can we improve professional clothing for women? A Plea for Fashion Brands
  • Great Cotton Educational Video
  • This Cotton Meme Suggests You Get a Fiber that Can Do It All
  • New Ultra Low Gossypol Cotton Food Product Approved by FDA

RSS Recent Posts — JPlovesLIFE

  • That Time of Year When Good Boots Come to Mind
  • National Farmers Day & Looking at Food Differently this Weekend
  • “They Look Like Trees” Documentary Premieres in Cincy
  • Remember your first boombox? Memories May Be Coming to Life (ad)

Copyright © 2021 · Grounded Communications, LLC · Hosting & Development by 3116 Digital