USA Today
By Jens Manuel Krogstad, The Des Moines Register
With help from a growing national network of farmer support groups, the 26-year-old Albers plans to graduate from college next year and grow organic vegetables on a four-acre plot at his family’s farm in northeast Iowa.
Farmer-Veteran Coalition planted the seed for his venture this summer. The California organization partnered with several groups, among them Iowa State University, to guide veterans on a tour of small-scale organic farms in central Iowa.
Farming, which had long seemed impossible because of high start-up costs, now seemed within reach for Albers.
“Ideally, I’m not going to write a resume, I’m not going to throw on a suit and go interview,” Albers said. “I’m going to start my own farm, have my own job and pay myself — which is really why I’m doing this.”
The coalition wants to triple in size by the end of next year and help 1,000 veterans start a career in agriculture, producing foods as varied as maple syrup and corn.
Assisting veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan transition to civilian life through stable employment is a national concern. Unemployment among veterans ages 18 to 44 was 13.9 percent in October, compared with a national average of 9.7 percent for nonveterans.
President Barack Obama in November signed into law the first proposal from his $447 billion jobs bill. It gives tax breaks to businesses that hire jobless veterans, and strengthens employment counseling and job search programs.
Pairing veterans with a farming career seemed like a logical fit, said Michael O’Gorman, 63, founder and executive director of Farmer-Veteran Coalition, located in Davis, Calif. Many possess a strong work ethic and physical strength, and return home to high unemployment rates in rural communities, he said.
O’Gorman, whose son enlisted in the Coast Guard after the Sept. 11 attacks, said the military and agriculture also share a similar culture. Both operate in a fierce meritocracy where performance is measured by both mental and physical stamina.
Veterans are used to setting concrete tasks and goals, and achieving tangible results, said Chris Ritthaler, national outreach coordinator for the coalition. That’s not always the case in an office job, where shuffling papers at a desk without a clear result can be demoralizing, he said.
Then there’s the sense of service gained from filling a fundamental societal need, O’Gorman said.
“I think after someone’s service in combat or a war, there’s a void to fill,” O’Gorman said. “What’s your second act, other than live in memory of those most difficult but greatest years of your life?”
That’s why O’Gorman said he receives calls every day from soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan mapping out the rest of their lives. His most recent conversation was with an active-duty soldier who wants to set up a cattle operation when he returns home in July, he said.
The coalition plans to expand through partnerships with organizations like the Beginning Farmer Center at Iowa State. Since 1994, the center has connected 487 rookie farmers with 48 landowners and retiring farmers.
David Baker, the center’s farm transition specialist, said he contacted the coalition this summer because he said there are more young veterans returning to the Midwest in search of a career. They are too often overlooked and underserved, he said.
Army veteran Jeff Hafner, 43, opened his farming operation near Panora for tours this summer through the coalition. He grows organic corn and conventional hogs and much more.
Albers said touring farms like Hafner’s inspired him to grow tomatoes, carrots, potatoes and other vegetables to sell to farmers markets and co-ops at a high enough margin to make a living.
He planned last week to travel to Ohio to pick up a small cultivating tractor, which will pair with a rusty plow he found stashed on the family farm near Waverly.
Even after serving three tours in Iraq as a door gunner on a helicopter, Albers admits to butterflies over his new adventure.
“It’s a daunting thing to step out into the real world,” he said.
