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Bev and Bruce Riddle operate Irish Ridge Farm and are long-time members of Jefferson County Farm Bureau.

Bev shared their personal account of why they belong to Jefferson County Farm Bureau. 

“We are in the Ohio Farm Bureau because 50 years ago, William Packer, Sr. encouraged
our group of friends to start a Farm Bureau Advisory Council. Each month we discussed a guide on an important issue that affects farm families in Ohio and reported our opinions to the Ohio Farm Bureau. The next month we received feedback on the guide. Most of the policies that were directed by the Ohio Farm Bureau came from these grassroots advisory councils. We felt that we had a better understanding and made an important contribution to the policies that were voted on at the Annual Meeting. Ours and our sons’ closest friends developed from those meetings.

“Our council was our mental safety net. We meet monthly to laugh, discuss what is going
on in our lives and share fellowship along with the guides. When one member was diagnosed with cancer, we spearheaded and helped to buy and install an updated milking system, so that he could continue to milk. When my husband was killed in an accident on our farm, our council members repaired frozen water lines, visited often, and helped finish the addition that we had started on our house. When one of us was hosting a farm tour, we all pitched in and helped get ready. They are the family that you can count on, and we still meet monthly.

“Because of the council, I served on the county board. Bruce and I served as leaders for
the Jolly Ranchers Farm Bureau Youth Council where we had discussion guides concerning
issues that face farm youth. Many members attended Farm Bureau [youth] camps, learned and taught about farm safety through skits and presentations and even won the National Safety Council top award three times. The friendships that they formed in that group are still there.”

Since farmers are less than 2% of the population, we need an organization that can
represent us in the halls of Congress. Farm Bureau is the largest farm organization in the United States and is well respected for their opinions by our Senators and Representatives. It is difficult to stay abreast of all the issues that face farmers as we are such a diverse group, but Our Ohio helps us to do just that.”