Guest speaker keeps Farm Bureau laughing
Guest speaker keeps Farm Bureau laughing
I-933, thefts make annual meeting agenda
MOSES LAKE — An Iowa farmer's observations of life kept Grant County farmers amused during their annual meeting.
Wayne Humphreys addressed the resident farm bureau's annual business meeting Thursday evening at the Best Western Lake Inn, in a speech mingling casual observations, humor and emphasizing quiet strength.
Humphreys began the evening by telling the audience how farming business is getting more complicated, but no matter how complicated it gets, some simple tools are still in use.
For example, while in South Dakota, he related, he was chatting with a farmer when two men, apparently friends, approached and attacked the farmer.
One man informed the farmer, "Karate from Korea," Humphreys recalled. The second followed suit, and said, "Judo … Japan!"
The farmer reached behind the seat of his pickup and made similar attacking motions toward his two assailants.
"Crescent wrench … John Deere!" came the punchline with laughter from the audience — the first of many laughs for the evening.
Throughout the speech, Humphreys called for the audience to respect the ACES approach to life, with ACES standing for attitude, communication, enthusiasm and simple sincerity, making his points with humorous stories and jokes.
"The enthusiasm for thinking agricultural, folks, the enthusiasm to be here next year, to persist with intelligence," he said. "To be here, but to be better, stronger and smarter. Everything we are tomorrow is exactly what we are this day except for the books that we read and the people that we meet."
He urged the audience to go places they wouldn't ordinarily show up, and meet people they're not expected to be around.
Humphreys ended on a somewhat poignant note, telling the audience essentially the same things happen to everybody, but it's what people do with the time they're given that makes their lives sparkle.
"For a hundred completely different reasons, we all came here tonight to be together," he said. Those in attendance were a part of the family of agriculture, the family of the farm bureau, he added. "No one goes home alone."
Humphreys called for a balance of ACES, the balance of a simple kind word.
"Good food, good people and a great place called Grant County," he said.
He wished the audience God bless before delivering his final punchline.
"Do us a favor, will you? All the way home tonight, promote real meat — hit a deer, OK?"
Also at the meeting, the bureau's annual business meeting, Val Barschaw provided an update on Initiative 933 and the bureau selected 24 of 28 delegates for the Washington Farm Bureau annual meeting in Yakima.
Grant County Sheriff's Office Chief Deputy John Turley presented information to the audience regarding theft of irrigation equipment, which is back on the rise, and meetings are being organized regarding the matter.
The bureau elected its board of directors, including President John Bates, Vice President Aaron Golladay and area directors and directors at large. The bureau also recognized outgoing board members Larry Campbell, Al Brower and Susan Dufault.
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