GIBSONBURG, Ohio – The Ohio chapter of the Farmer Veteran Coalition (FVC) will hold a Small Ruminant Workshop on Sept. 21. The workshop will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Wallace Family Boersin Gibsonburg, Ohio.

The workshop is designed specifically for military veteran farmers interested in ruminant production. Participants will receive essential training on various aspects of small ruminant farming, including selling ruminant products, understanding nutritional needs, managing internal parasites, and learning the FAMACHA method for assessing animal health.

The workshop will also include a guided tour of a goat and hay farm, providing hands-on learning experiences.

 The event will feature presentations by several experts in the field. Dr. Sherrie Nuttle, a Regional Veterinarian with the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s Division of Meat Inspection, will share her expertise on meat inspection and animal health.

 Brooks Warner, an Agriculture and Natural Resource Extension educator from Ohio State University, will provide insights into effective farming practices.

 Nellie Rowland, an Agricultural and Natural Resource Extension Educator at Central State University, will discuss nutritional needs and management strategies.

 Host and seasoned farm owner Bill Wallace will offer practical knowledge and a tour of his farm.

 “We help veterans transition to becoming successful farmers because it’s very easy to become an unsuccessful farmer,” said Lou Driever, a member of the FVC Advisory Panel for the Corn Belt. “The way we do that is through a combination of mentorship, we give away $3,000 to $5,000 kickstarter grants and we give away five devoted tractors a year.”

 Farmer Veteran Coalition got its start in 2006 when William O’Hare and Bill Bishop of the University of New Hampshire’s Carsey Institute published a report showing that rural families are paying a disproportionately high price for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Their study shows that an ever increasing number of those enlisted in the U.S. military had their roots in rural America.

 By 2007, Michael O’Gorman organized a gathering for farmers in California’s Central Coast to talk about creating jobs on farms for returning veterans. The meeting took place at Swanton Berry Farm in Santa Cruz County in California and among those attending the meeting were three women who had all lost their sons in either Iraq or Afghanistan – Nadia McCaffrey, Dolores Kesterson and Mary Tillman, mother of Pat Tillman, who left a lucrative football career to serve his country. The first FVC chapter was formed in California in 2009.

 While FVC has been in California for 15 years, the Ohio chapter of FVC got its start one year ago. The kickoff for this Ohio chapter occurred at Frog Hollow Farms in Stryker, Ohio. The event took place at the home of Ed Nickolite, a U.S. Navy veteran. There, Nickolite tends to more than 1,300 trees and shrubs, including walnut trees that will be ready for harvest within eight years.

 The idea for an Ohio chapter of FVC began in the offices of the Center for Innovative Food Technology (CIFT), based in Toledo, Ohio.  CIFT provides business and technical assistance to agriculture and food companies across the state.

 “As we were hearing from our companies and considering unique ways to find solutions, the idea came about to work with our veterans,” said Rebecca Singer, CIFT president and CEO. “I started digging a little deeper and there was a Farmer Veterans Coalition but Ohio wasn’t recognized.”

 Singer is credited with getting an Ohio chapter of FVC started.

 “This gave them a place closer to home where they could get the resources that the national coalition could provide,” Singer said.

 CIFT formed a partnership with Farm Credit Mid-America among others to help with finances, started a 501(c)3 and jumped through many other hoops before the chapter could be officially established.

 The Ohio FVC chapter has roughly 1,500 members. According to the Ohio Department of Agriculture, Ohio has 14,000 veteran farmers, meaning the chapter reaches just 10 percent of those farmers.

 “We need to let folks out there know we’re available to help them,” Driever said. “Once we can connect, then we can start working together to help one another.”

 To register for the workshop in Gibsonburg, go to https://forms.office.com/r/CEFGXhWMPV. For more information, contact Isabel Montez at imontez2640@gmail.com. Space is limited to the first 30 registrants.