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Antique Tractor Preservation Day

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Guest Columnist
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Kansas House Legislature Resolution Declares AUGUST 22ND, 2025 ANTIQUE
TRACTOR PRESERVATION DAY To be Observed Annually in the State of Kansas.

Kansas leads the Nation with adoption of Historic Resolution recognizing America’s Agricultural Heritage & Tractor Preservation.

TOPEKA, KS (March 05, 2025) – The Kansas House Legislature announced today, during its 2025-2026 Legislative Session, an historic Resolution declaring August 22nd, 2025 Antique Tractor Preservation Day, to be observed ANNUALLY throughout the State of Kansas. The Resolution received 56 Legislative Co-Signers and was awarded to Michael Hinton, Founder, Antique Tractor Preservation Day, and Owner/CEO of www.TalkingTractors.com. The Resolution holds further significance in that it was bequeathed to Hinton and the People of Kansas the same week Governor Laura Kelly proclaimed March 2025 Kansas Agriculture Month.

Representative Kevin Schwertfeger (Republican), Kansas House of Representatives-District 114 spearheaded the efforts for the Resolution, commenting “This Resolution brings further focus to the relevance of vintage farm machinery in the State of Kansas – Where America’s agriculture ancestry resonates. Michael Hinton’s passion for Antique Tractor Preservation keeps our American farming history alive, for appreciation by older and younger generations!”

Hinton, a member of the Great Plains Antique Tractor Club [GPATC], Hutchinson, Kans., expressed his appreciation of Representative Schwertfeger and the Kansas House Legislature, reaffirming “This Resolution underscores the importance of how the tractor transformed American farming, and the connection to our state’s core rural heritage – not just as imperative farm machinery used for agriculture production, but also its ever-present place in one’s family’s history. My vision for Antique Tractor Preservation Day is that its awareness continues to heighten and is celebrated by Tractor Clubs, Schools, and communities across Kansas, throughout the United States, and Worldwide – consistent with what occurred in 2024, following Kansas Governor Laura Kelly’s Proclamation. This Resolution is symbolic of America’s Farmers & Antique Tractor Enthusiasts and is Good for Kansas and all of Agriculture!”

Baptismal Services Held At Lovina’s House

By
tammiehoeme
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Lovina’s Amish Kitchen
Lovina Eitcher,
Old Order Amish
Cook, Wife &
Mother of Eight

I want to write this column before I leave this morning. Daughter Loretta and I are attending the coffee break our church ladies are having for neighbor Susan. She had hip replacement surgery so this should cheer her up. Everyone always brings a lot of good food and it’s nice to visit before we all go home and start our day’s work. Dustin isn’t working today due to the rainy weather so he will keep a few of their children home with him.

 

I need to wash laundry when I get back home. I have lots of clothes to wash plus lots of dish towels from Sunday. I went with my husband Joe to his appointment yesterday so I didn’t get to the laundry. I also have extra blankets to wash that we had in the nursery area for small children that take naps during the service. 

  

Sunday we hosted church services and two young souls were baptized. We had over double the amount of people we usually have at a regular service.  Both sides of the pole barn had benches set up and they were filled. My guess is we had well over three hundred people here. Not all of the youth stayed to eat but we still served over thirteen tables with some of us eating before so we could serve. 

 

Our menu was homemade wheat and white bread (almost 60 loaves), ham (45-50 pounds), cheese spread (3 batches of the recipe I’ll share. The recipe is also in “The Essential Amish Cookbook”), peanut butter spread (it took all but a gallon of the recipe I shared last week), pickles (22 quarts), pickled red beets (8 quarts), hot peppers (8 pints), strawberry and grape jam, butter, coffee (ten gallons), spearmint/peppermint tea (5 gallons), and a variety of cookies. I had bought all disposable dishes so the women didn’t have to wash as many dishes. 

 

I am so glad this church is over now but I was glad to host it for such an important reason. In two weeks, church services will be here again, Lord willing. It should be quite smaller. Daughter Elizabeth and Tim couldn’t be here for church services on Sunday. They attended the funeral of his Aunt Mattie and Uncle Lavern ages fifty-seven and fifty-eight. Such a sad tragedy. They were biking home from their church ice cream supper and were almost to their driveway when they were struck by a vehicle that didn’t see them. They leave to mourn seven children, eleven grandchildren, a father, brothers, and sisters. Our sympathy goes out to them. May God help them through this difficult trial in life. Elizabeth and Tim left Abigail, 8, and Timothy (TJ), 6, here for church as they didn’t have enough room to take them along. The funeral was in a nearby community.

 

After church services Daughter Susan and Ervin and several of their children left to go to Fort Wayne, IN to visit with Ervin’s Dad who is admitted to the hospital. We pray he will be better soon. Tim and Elizabeth came here after the funeral and took four of Ervin and Susan’s children home after supper. Son Joseph and Grace also joined us for supper. They attended church in another district. Joseph’s friend and coworker Thomas was baptized that day.

 

I made spaghetti and meatballs for our family that stayed or came for supper. Also on the menu was ham sandwiches, chips, and ice cream. It was a simple but easy meal to make after a long day. Needless to say, we were all glad to see bedtime come. This next weekend plans are to butcher pigs here. One for Ervin and Susan, One for Dustin and Loretta and one for us. Another job we will be glad is done. More on that next week. 

 

God’s blessings!


HOMEMADE CHURCH CHEESE SPREAD

6 pounds process cheese spread (Velveeta or other brands of your choice)

1 ½ cup butter 

8 cups cream

 Put all three ingredients in a big roasting pan and bake at 150° to 200°, stirring every 15 minutes until all is melted.

Cover with plastic wrap to prevent it from getting a crusty top while cooling. The spread is served on a sandwich with or without meat. It is good just spread on bread with some pickles.  

Lovina’s Amish Kitchen is written by Lovina Eicher, Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife, and mother of eight. Her three cookbooks, The Cherished Table, The Essential Amish Cookbook, and Amish Family Recipes, are available wherever books are sold. Readers can write to Eicher at Lovina’s Amish Kitchen, PO Box 234, Sturgis, MI 49091 (please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for a reply); or email Questionsforlovina@gmail.com and your message will be passed on to her to read. She does not personally respond to emails.

Kansas county features stunning tour of redbud trees and barn quilt creations

By
Guest Columnist
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By Sheridan Wimmer

Kansas Living Magazine

Many of us have memories of our grandmas or moms who enjoyed quilting. Their hands were never still – always with a needle in their hand or a sewing machine pedal at their foot. Like reading physical newspapers, quilting is an art form that may be dwindling over generations, but it isn’t gone – especially in places where it’s treasured.
In Sedan, the county seat of Chautauqua County, quilting, pottery and small-town charm make up a patchwork of Americana worth saving. Cousins Jolynn Reed and Kathy Ebersole work to save the spirit of their town and the legacy of quilting through the annual Redbud and Barn Quilt Tour every third weekend in April.
“The first tour was in 1961, and I remember how much fun I’d have at it over the years,” Reed says. “I was a military kid, so I moved around a lot, but I’d come back and stay at our family farm, especially for the annual Redbud Tour.”
Reed and Ebersole are the organizers of the tour and are both artistic. Reed is a photographer and Ebersole teaches pottery and has barn quilt painting classes, which are held at the Kurtis Art Center in Sedan. Although they’re cousins,  they act more like sisters, often finishing each other’s sentences and creating patterns of conversation similar to the process of completing a quilt.
“She’s the perfectionist and I’m, well, not,” Reed laughs. “We play off of each other really well.”
The history of barn quilts
The idea of barn quilts originated nearly 300 years ago with the arrival of immigrants from Europe. Starting in Pennsylvania, barn quilting (painting) moved its way across the United States and became a landmark in sharing directions or finding a particular family.
Barn quilts preserve a time in our history when barns and quilts showcased a community’s heritage. While barn quilts can represent something family-specific, they can also resemble a traditional quilt pattern like Jacob’s ladder or Compass Star.
The year-round barn quilt tour
The Redbud and Barn Quilt Tour occurs every third weekend of April, although the barn quilts can be toured year-round.
“We have more than 60 barn quilts that people can tour anytime,” Ebersole says. “The landowners have always been incredibly gracious to allow us to hang the barn quilts on gates that can be viewed from the road.”
Ebersole owns a unique shop in downtown Sedan, Katz Custom Jewelry, where she sells jewelry she creates. Maps of the route are available at her store and many others on Main Street in Sedan during store hours. The tour kit includes different route options in addition to the barn quilt tour, like a “Wild, Wild West” tour that takes you on country roads to the Oklahoma border town of Elgin, with its rugged slogan, “A town too tough to die.” The route also showcases an old arch bridge and Stoney Point Lookout, one of the highest points in Chautauqua County.
The self-guided tour through the countryside of Chautauqua County is breathtaking – with views of greening trees, cattle and cropland – the barn quilts, which are created by volunteers in Chautauqua County, offer a bonus to the route where you rarely see other vehicles.
Catching the redbud trees in bloom depends on Mother Nature’s timeline – some years the third weekend in April is perfect while in other years, like 2024, the blooms happened early. The packet of routes you can pick up in Sedan includes 28 stops to see redbud trees – whether they’re blooming or not.
The third weekend of April events
What does occur on the specific dates each third weekend of April is a photography, art and pottery display, plus a barn quilt painting display, offered by Ebersole at the Kurtis Art Center on Saturday. At a main street store, The Red Buffalo, you can stop for a free redbud tree sapling, a route kit and a barn quilt bingo map on Saturday and Sunday.
The Sedan Kansas Chamber of Commerce and Sedan Area Economic Development Committee are supporters of the event and offer an opportunity for businesses to place a sticker on a bingo card – an effort to stimulate the downtown economy at 16 locations.
Once a participant gets a bingo, they turn it back in at the Kurtis Arts Center for a chance to win prizes.
Growing for the future
Reed and Ebersole are passionate about Sedan and the memories they’ve made there. Reed thinks about the impact of the Redbud and Barn Quilt Tour and gets emotional when she thinks of her grandmother and what she’d think of the event now.
“I just know she’d be so proud of the growth of Sedan,” she says. “This event is a legacy, and we hope to grow it for future generations to continue to enjoy.”
Just as our grandmas and moms weave together threads of art in quilts, Reed and Ebersole are uniquely connecting the growth of Sedan to the simpler way of life through the barn quilt tour, stitching together community pride, rural heritage and artistic expression.
Stay updated on the next Redbud and Barn Quilt Tour on the Facebook group.
Where to eat:
Be sure to visit Gunnar’s Bourbon for lunch – bourbon not required, but a tasting is responsibly encouraged. Buck’s BBQ is a great location for dinner or Granny Wolfe’s Green Door Café for home cooking specials.
Where to stay:
Grandma’s Houses offers two locations where you can stay comfortably within Sedan. For other locations, visit www.cityofsedan.com.

https://kansaslivingmagazine.com/articles/2025/02/03/kansas-county-features-stunning-tour-of-redbud-trees-and-barn-quilt-creations

“Businesses for Babies”

By
Guest Columnist
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0

When businesses support working parents, they’re not just boosting their bottom line – they’re helping prevent child abuse and neglect. In South Dakota, 72.5% of all children under age six have all available parents in the workforce, making family-friendly workplace policies crucial for our state’s families.

Research shows that workplace policies like flexible scheduling, paid family leave, and childcare assistance significantly reduce major risk factors for child maltreatment by decreasing parental stress and providing essential economic stability. When parents have the flexibility to attend school events, care for sick children, or work from home when appropriate, it strengthens family bonds and creates more nurturing environments. Access to quality childcare and living wages helps ensure families can meet basic needs without the overwhelming stress that can lead to crisis.

Prevention is far better – and far less costly – than intervention after abuse occurs. Studies show that every dollar invested in prevention can save up to seven dollars in future costs related to child welfare services, healthcare, and criminal justice. By creating supportive work environments, businesses play a crucial role in building the safe, stable, nurturing relationships children need to thrive. These investments in families today help develop healthier communities and a stronger workforce for tomorrow.

The Center for the Prevention of Child Maltreatment’s “Businesses for Babies” campaign highlights South Dakota companies that have adopted family-friendly policies. By showcasing businesses that prioritize family well-being through flexible schedules, parental leave, and childcare support, the campaign aims to inspire more companies to implement similar policies. Together, we can create a business culture that strengthens families and protects our most vulnerable citizens – our children.

Christina Young has been an influential figure in the child welfare field for over a decade, dedicating her career to the well-being of children and families. She directed an in-home family services program covering 30 western counties in Iowa, demonstrating her commitment to community-based support. Christina has a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s in human services administration. Follow The Prairie Doc® at www.prairiedoc.org, Facebook, Instagram, Youtube and Threads. Prairie Doc Programming includes On Call with the Prairie Doc®, a medical Q&A show (streaming Thursday’s on Facebook), 2 podcasts, and a Radio program (on SDPB), providing health information based on science, built on trust.

Net-Zero Cows

By
Lee Pitts
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0
lee pitts

The liberals who’ve been trying to legislate the weather lately now say that we are facing a “national climate emergency” and to hear them rant and rave it’s all the cow’s fault. Universities and greenie groups are insisting that we need net-zero cows so we won’t face “the sixth mass extinction”. These net-zero cows will be “more climate friendly” because they’ll contribute zero methane, but one wonders, what would a net-zero cow look like?

Believe it or not there are efforts afoot to come up with an EPD that ranchers can use to breed less gaseous cows. It’s been predicted that such an EPD might be five years away but it could be accelerated if a corporation like McDonalds suddenly wants beef from climate friendly cattle. Then the Big Four packers will supposedly pay a premium to ranchers who produce net-zero cattle. So instead of breeding for cattle that taste good, grow fast and efficiently, and calve easily we will all be breeding for cattle that burp less.

These new net-zero cows will probably weight 600 pounds because smaller cattle produce less methane. According to scientists net-zero cows will wear an on-board digester gas mask on their face. But if the gas mask covers the cow’s entire face how will they eat? Without any feed the cows will die making them net-zero because dead cows don’t burp all that much. This would really please the greenies who dream of ridding the world of cows.

Although this is counterintuitive, we’re told that cattle on grass actually produce 20% more methane than cattle in a feedlot. Grasses supposedly produce more methane than corn. So we can’t just spray the feed in a feedlot bunk with bicarbonate of soda because we have not addressed what we’re going to do about the grazing of cows. I checked on-line and Gas Ex Maximum is $17.99 per bottle and Beano Ultra 800 is $20.79 so we’d need one endless line of tanker trucks full of products like Pepto Bismol, Extra Strength Mylanta or Imodium to spray all the grasslands in America. I suppose you could distribute it in a block form but it’s hard enough to get cows to lick their mineral block so I don’t think they’ll be lining up to dine on the Kaopectate Extra Strength Gas Relief block.

Speaking of things cows wont eat, seaweed isn’t exactly the cow’s version of filet mignon and yet it has also been put forth as another answer to gaseous cows. Because I live by the ocean I gathered up a bunch of prime fresh seaweed and dumped in front of 100 nearly starving cows. Not only would they not eat the wet seaweed they peed and pooped on it to show their disdain. They wouldn’t touch the dried seaweed either. And not many cows are raised right on the ocean so there’ would be the additional cost of transporting the stuff. I guess you could make the seaweed in bolus or pill form but who wants to gather their cows everyday to come up with a solution in search of a problem?

Another way a rancher might produce net-zero cows is by leasing out his or her land for solar arrays and windmills and acquiring carbon credits in that manner. Their remaining cows will produce just as much methane as always but the rancher will be able to make his cattle net-zero with the greenie’s stamp of approval.

Of course wealthy ranchers will do what big corporations do when faced with the questionable climate change crises: they’ll just buy carbon credits on carbon trading platforms to make Wall Street con artists and former Vice President Al Gore even richer.

Personally, I think the idea that our cows can cause the climate to change half way around the world is the biggest con game since The Sting. If you don’t think so consider this: I looked at several sources and their guess as to how much the methane produced by cows contributed to global warming. The answers varied from three percent to thirty percent! So it’s not exactly settled science and breeding for net-zero cows with the use of an EPD for methane production is the dumbest idea I’ve heard of since the motorized ice cream cone.

It’s like treating a cold with chemo.

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