Pennsylvania Ag Connection - Veterans Honored as New Members of Homegrown By Heroes

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Veterans Honored as New Members of Homegrown By Heroes
Pennsylvania Ag Connection - 08/21/2017

On the final day of Ag Progress Days, State Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding honored two military veterans-turned-farmers as the newest members of Pennsylvania's Homegrown By Heroes program.

"Two percent of Americans are farmers, and two percent of Americans serve in the military. It is a special honor to stand here with two men who have dedicated their lives to feeding us and protecting us," Secretary Redding said. "The Homegrown By Heroes program recognizes the special contribution of our veteran farmers."

Homegrown By Heroes, also known as HBH, is the official farmer veteran branding program of America. The HBH logo serves to inform consumers that products donning the logo were produced by military veterans. The program is available to farmers, ranchers, fishermen, and value-added producers of all branches and eras of military service.

Tom Williams, of Freedom Valley Farm in Shippensburg, enlisted in the Army in 1984 and spent six years as a M1 Tank Mechanic, then 14 years in recruiting until retiring in 2004.

"I had no farming experience at all, but in 2009 as a work leader, I had an employee that was having difficulty with his farm. I volunteered to help him get some of the work done to give him a break," Williams said. "Over the next 90 days, I assisted him with his small dairy operation and instantly found my calling."

Today, Williams and his family live on a five-acre farm, where they raise approximately Boer goats on 40+ acres of leased land using rotational pasture management to both feed the goats and to help manage parasite loads. Earlier this year, Williams was one of 50 veterans awarded a Fellowship Fund grant from the Farmers Veteran Coalition, which he used to purchase a manure spreader.

Arthur Fuller served in the United States Marine, then reenlisted in the Marine Corp following the Sept. 11 attack. He was deployed to Iraq. While there, he was exposed to an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) at close range, which caused a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). Since being released from the Marine Corps, Fuller has found satisfaction as a volunteer with local veterans' organizations. He dedicated much of his time to help revitalize the local American Legion. Arthur earned a business degree and hopes to build a home inspection business capable of supporting his family without the aid of outside funding.

Fuller, his wife and their seven children operate a family farm along with his home inspection business. They raise chickens, Registered Polled Herefords, Registered American Chinchilla Rabbits, and vegetables.

Pennsylvania's Department of Agriculture has officially partnered with Homegrown By Heroes, and has combined the HBH label with the PA Preferred logo to give farmer veterans a unique point-of-sale visibility. The combined label provides consumers with a tangible way to support veterans and an avenue to share the veteran's story.

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