News on Farming & Rural Life
(l to r) Tony Rahm, assistant chief; Joe Degen, president; Chad Besch, MaxYield Energy team leader; Roger Simpson, secretary.
MaxYield Cooperative recently presented the Algona Fire Department with a contribution of $2500, plus an additional $2500 in matching funds from Land O’Lakes Foundation. The funds will be used to upgrade the department’s air packs.
Each new air pack costs $5000 and the purchase of new packs will increase fireman’s safety and protection, plus increase the number of quality packs for the department.
MaxYield Energy team leader and member of the Algona Fire Department Chad Besch presented the checks to Tony Rahm, assistant fire chief, Joe Degen, president, and Roger Simpson, secretary.
MaxYield presented the department with matching funds from the Land O’Lakes Foundation. Land O’Lakes Foundation helps rural communities prosper and prepare for tomorrow by donating resources that develop and strengthen organizations dedicated to Hunger, Education and Community. Since 1997, the Foundation has awarded millions of dollars in grants through a variety of giving programs.
MaxYield Cooperative is a local farmer-owned cooperative serving members and clients in Iowa, and southern Minnesota. Founded in 1915, MaxYield Cooperative is headquartered in West Bend, Iowa. More information about the cooperative can be found online at www.MaxYieldCooperative.com and www.FromTheField.com.
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Dayton Brugman, who grew up on a farm near Peterson, IA, joined MaxYield as a crop scout & soil sampling intern with a passion for agriculture. Brugman, who is entering his sophomore year at DMACC in the fall, grew up helping out on the family farm and taking care of his show pigs. Brugman is majoring in agricultural business and has plans to transfer to Iowa State University after his sophomore year. His goal is to return to the family farm, but interning at MaxYield has introduced him to agronomic knowledge that sparked his interest. “I was never really interested in it before, and now that I’ve gotten to work in the field, it’s really been an eye opener. I think I might want to minor in agronomy once I get to Iowa State.”
Q: What has been your favorite experience on the job so far?
A: Learning the process of how seed is treated has been my favorite experience. The whole field of agronomy has sparked my interest and I’m eager to learn more. Prior to interning at MaxYield, my only experience with agronomy was identifying weeds in an FFA competition.
Q: What have you enjoyed about your Crop Scouting & Soil Sampling Internship?
A: This internship is very hands-on. I get to do something new every day. There’s never a dull moment around here and the people, both MaxYield team members and clients, have been great to work with.
Q: Who is your mentor and how have you benefitted from working with your mentor?
A: My mentor is Mason Mentink, who is an agronomy specialist at MaxYield. He has been a huge help in making the internship a learning experience because I get to feed off of his knowledge. When I decided to have a greater focus on the agronomy field, he helped put it together so I could get the most out of the internship.
Q: What kinds of qualities does someone in your position need to possess?
A: Crop scout & soil sampling interns first need to be responsible and respectful to the equipment they get to use. A strong work ethic is needed because of the long hours that will be spent outside in the fields. They need to be adaptable to changes and be able to communicate effectively with their co-workers and clients.
Benefit for Ben KronFree will donation meal – grilled by Kossuth County Cattlemen
Silent and live auctions + DJ by MOJO Productions
MaxYield team member Ben Kron has been off work since March 26th and was hospitalized for several weeks, first in Mason City and recently in Iowa City. Though he his home now, he has a very long recovery and more surgery ahead. A benefit has been set to help he and his family with medical expenses.
If you have items that can be donated to the benefit auction, please contact Melanie Elbert at 515-884-2271 or Chad Meyer at 515-320-2593. An account has been set up at Farmer’s State Bank and is accepting donations now. Ben’s story is below. Can you help?
On March 26th, Ben went to ER with severe abdominal pain. After a few tests, it was confirmed he had a perforated bowel. Ben was transferred to Mason City and underwent emergency abdominal surgery and removed a portion of his colon. A few days later, Ben started having high fevers. The infection spread and collected around his lung. Doctors placed a chest tube to drain the infection, but realized the infection had spread through his body. Mason City determined he needed to be in a bigger hospital with more surgeons if surgeries were needed.
On April 2nd, Ben was transferred to University of Iowa’s hospitals in Iowa City. Once arrived, doctors ran variety of tests and scans to see where infection was at; and why the fevers would never go away. There was a pocket of infection located around his lung and they decided to place an additional tube to help drain the infection. Several other pockets were located on left side and 3 more drain tubes were placed to help drain the infection. The fevers still continued. On April 17th, he underwent another surgery to remove some infection from the original surgery incision site. Fevers still continued so another CT scan was done. They found he had developed a fistula, so every time Ben would eat, he was feeding the fistula. Currently, he is bypassing feeding and now only on IV nutrition 24hrs a day. The fevers have stopped!!!
On May 3rd, Ben was released from the hospital and was able to come home to keep healing. He currently has 4 drains on his side and the IV nutrition. Ben still has a very long road ahead of him. There will be a couple more surgeries to repair colon later in the year and numerous follow-up appointments in weeks to come. We are putting together this benefit to defray expenses for them.
The family will receive ALL money made and donated to this benefit, along with any cash donations sent to an account set up at Farmers State Bank called, “Ben Kron Benefit.” Ben is currently employed at MaxYield, an active member of the community, and his beautiful daughters both go to school at Bishop Garrigan. His wife Heather, is still working full time managing Brookestone Hotel in Algona and Emmetsburg, while caring for her family!!
Although Zach Merfeld didn’t grow up on a farm, he found a home in agriculture at MaxYield Cooperative as an Agronomy Specialist Trainee. Originally from Clear Lake, he worked for area farmers throughout high school and pursued a degree in Agricultural Studies with a minor in Agronomy at Iowa State University, graduating in December 2017.
Merfeld was not an intern at MaxYield prior to starting his full-time career. The learning opportunities the trainee program offers drew him to the position. “MaxYield is always staying ahead on the technology side of things, which I think will only grow in the future,” stated Merfeld. “I enjoy the challenge of helping farmers stay a step ahead in efficiency and maximizing the potential of their ground.”
Q: How would you describe your experience so far at MaxYield?
A: I really enjoy coming to work every day because it’s an exciting environment and my co-workers are fun to be around. Since starting in January, some of my daily tasks have included delivering seed and checking fields.
Q: Do you have advice for future college graduates seeking their first full-time career position?
A: Future college graduates looking for their full-time position can’t be afraid to get out of their comfort zone. They’re going to be doing lots of new and intimidating things once they start their career. They have to be prepared to ask questions in order to learn and succeed.
Q: As a recent college graduate, what did you do in college that helped make you a better team member at MaxYield?
A: Getting involved in campus organizations got me out of my comfort zone and shaped me into a better communicator. The communication skills I gained while in college made it easier for me to talk to farmers and ask important questions once I started my position here.
$2500 to win, $300 to startOfficials with the Hancock County Speedway announced today that MaxYield Seed will continue as title sponsor of the IMCA Northern SportMod Nationals held in Britt, IA. The event will be presented on June 19th by, DeKalb/Asgrow, Croplan by WinField and Latham Hi-Tech Seeds.
“We are happy to have MaxYield Seed and their partners back on board for this event,” said Josh Omans of 4 Wide Promotions. “A year ago we guaranteed more money to main event starters by paying $300 to start,” stated Omans.
Like last year, the 2018 edition of the MaxYield Seed SportMod Nationals will pay $2500 to win guaranteed. 46 SportMods competed in the event in 2017.
Race purse highlights include second earning $1200, third place paying $1000, fifth place worth $700, tenth place earns $500 and the event pays $300 to start.
“We are pleased to continue our association with the Hancock County Speedway. The MaxYield Seed Northern SportMod Nationals is a great client appreciation event for our growers. It has also been exciting to see the growth in car count the last couple years of the event, and with the changes and increased purse money that 4 Wide Promotions has committed, we think this event will continue to get bigger,” said Chad Meyer, MaxYield client relations/communications director.
The winner of the DeKalb/Asgrow Dash, which determines the starting order of the top qualifiers, earns $200, while the Croplan by WinField Hard Charger Award nets $100 to the driver advancing the most positions from their original starting spot in the main event. Top finishers in the Latham Hi-Tech Seed Last Chance Qualifiers earn their way into the championship feature.
The main event will be 30 laps in length, with no scheduled pit stop at halfway, and starts 24 cars.
The 2018 edition of the IMCA Northern SportMod Nationals will take place Tuesday, June 19th.
Fargo, North Dakota’s Jesse Skalicky was last year’s winner of the event and the six-foot tall trophy.
Past winners also include Tim Donlinger – 2007, Nate Chodur – 2008, 2010, 2013, Adam Ackerman –
2009, Doug Smith – 2011, Matt Lettow – 2012, Aaron Benson – 2014, Nick Meyer – 2015 and Johnathon Logue in 2016.
More information about the Hancock County Speedway and MaxYield Seed can be found at www.hancockcountyspeedway.com and www.MaxYieldSeed.com.
