Another year is coming to a close! Do you ever look back and wonder where the last year has gone? Well, that is certainly how I am feeling. Some of the memories that we find the sweetest are the times when dear friends - “customers” - visit our farm and share their life stories, encourage us with their kind words, and offer their friendship. It truly makes all the hard work worthwhile. We want you to know how grateful we are for each of our “customers” and the joy that it brings us to provide our community with healthy food.
This year we have enjoyed watching our family grow and change. Daily we stay busy with crops, chickens, cattle, and our meat business. Our year has been filled with so many blessings – grandbabies to love, another high school graduation to celebrate, and opportunities to serve others in the name of Jesus, and much more.
Dan’s daily routine has remained pretty much the same as he continues to care for the livestock and crops, but Diane’s roles have changed dramatically. She retired from teaching in August after 25 years of homeschooling. In her “retirement” she continues to do the bookkeeping and marketing for the farm with the addition of bookkeeping for two of Seth’s businesses, GH Buildings and Hesterberg Doodles.
Caleb & Beca had an unexpected challenge when Beca was diagnosed with a pituitary tumor. By God’s grace she was able to connect with one of the top neurosurgeon in Colorado who specialized in her condition. During the surgery in May, the suspected tumor turned out to be a large cyst which was removed. Her prognosis was very good and she has since made a complete recovery. They surprised us further with the announcement that they are expecting a baby boy in May.
Luke & Brittany were enjoying their new home in Gifford when the property of a family friend was offered to them. It was their dream home in the country on 7 acres so they took the leap. They now have agreements on both homes and are waiting for closings on both properties. Sweet, little Ella Grace celebrated her 1st birthday in August and big brother, Lane, just turned 3. Luke & Josiah continued to expand their excavation business with the purchase of a tile plow.
Josiah & Logan are also in the process of moving to the country. They are remodeling the house that Dan’s grandparents built in the 1950s. It’s exciting that they have the opportunity to be the 3rd generation to live there and farm the land. They hope to be in their new home by February so they can be settled when the new baby (due in mid-April) arrives. John Luke, 2, will be a great big brother.
Seth and a friend spent the winter months outfitting a contractor’s trailer. In July he left his job with Wolken Construction and started his own construction business, GH Buildings. He has had plenty of work and things are going very well. We are grateful that he still helps us on the farm during the busy seasons as he continues to grow his other business, Hesterberg Doodles. He now has three breeding females and plans to offer F1, F1b, and F1bb Standard Goldendoodle puppies in the future. His black female, Duchess, has wormed her way into our hearts and even into the house at times.
Elizabeth decided to finish high school early so she worked through the summer and graduated in August. Since then she has been working for us on the farm and growing her own livestock enterprises. She has a laying hen flock, a couple of young sows that she hopes to breed in the spring, and Magnolia, her new Jersey cow. Elizabeth loves milking and then turning the milk into delicious dairy delights. Her schedule is pretty full with leading worship and teaching 3 & 4 year old Sunday School at church.
Life is full and we feel blessed that we are able do what we love here on the farm, but we have also had some difficult times throughout the year as well. May was especially hard when Diane’s sister, Sherry, passed away unexpectedly at 54 and Beca had brain surgery. Thankfully Dan was able to make the trip to Colorado to be a support for Caleb during the surgery, and we were able to spend a few days in Pennsylvania for Sherry’s services and be a support to the family.
Despite the challenges, we have found that God can always bring beauty out of ashes as he promises in Isaiah 61.
“The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me… to bestow on them a crown of beauty
instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.”
That’s what Christmas is really about. I’ve only recently begun to understand that Jesus’s ultimate purpose in coming to our world was to bind up broken hearts. That’s the greatest blessing of all time!
We look forward to the year 2022. Exciting changes are planned for our business and we hope you come along for the ride!
Blessings to you and yours in the new year,
Diane