The waterfowl forecast for the upcoming season looks more positive than last year's dismal season. While overall duck numbers were down in the breeding grounds due to dry conditions, many species' populations remain above long-term averages. The eastern Dakotas region saw excellent production numbers due to very wet conditions. If weather patterns bring sufficient cold fronts to spur migration, hunters in the mid-south region could see better waterfowl numbers than the previous season.
1. 1 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2019
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3. NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 3
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Southern Traditions Outdoors | Rob Somerville
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DISCLAIMER - Neither the authors nor Southern Traditions Outdoors
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On the Cover
Southern Traditions Outdoors Magazine Mission Statement:
Southern Traditions Outdoors Magazine vows to put forth a publication to
promote the outdoors lifestyle in a positive manner. We will strive to encourage
veteran and novice outdoorsmen, women, kids, and the physically challenged
to participate in the outdoors in a safe and ethical manner. Our publication will
bring positive attention to the wondrous beauty of the world of Nature in the
mid-south.
Garry Mason
Walter Wilkerson
Terry Wilkerson
Steve McCadams
Kelley Powers
Shawn Todd
Eddie Brunswick
Larry Self
Cody Rodriquez
John Sloan
Richard Simms
Dana Watford
Buck Gardner
Richard Hines
Ed Lankford
Drew Brooks
John Latham
Will Gregory
John Roberts
Richard Hines
Rob Hurt
Mark Buehler
Richard A. Fagan
Neill McLaurin
Sam Bradshaw
Daryl Ratajczak
Jonathon Holden
Field Staff Editors
Owners - Eddie Anderson
Rob Somerville
Kevin Griffith
Publisher - Eddie Anderson
Editor - Rob Somerville
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Rob Somerville - Managing
Partner
Distribution
Johnathan Anderson
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
A chill is in the air. Your lab watches you closely to see if you are wearing camo. Excitement fills
the minds of all duck hunters as they dream about a mallard and a suzey, gliding into their decoy
spread. Photo by Rob Somerville
PG..................... ARTICLE ............................................................AUTHOR
6 ......................... Waterfowl Forecast............................................................Steve McCadams
12 ......................... The Old Man and the Monarch ........................................Rob Somerville
16 ......................... Norman Yoder Memorial....................................................Rob Somerville
17 ......................... 2019 West Tennessee Fur Takers Rendezvous................Rob Somerville
18 ......................... Sometimes Hunters Can Be a Pain...........In the Back......Dr. Barry Cole
22 ......................... Crankbait Crappie.............................................................Cody Rodriquez
28 ........................ Family Farming is on the Rise...........................................Jonathan Holden
34 ......................... National Farm to School Month.........................................Jonathan Holden
40 ......................... Business Profile - Cypress Creek Outdoors......................STO
46 ......................... A Single Drop of Dew........................................................John Sloan
50 ......................... Traditions Tips...................................................................Richard A. Fagan
52 ......................... Trophy Room.....................................................................STO
53 ......................... Cooking on the Wild Side..................................................Rob Somerville
6. 6 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
Most duck hunters across the
Volunteer State took it on the
chin last year. Still bruised from
one of the worst seasons on re-
cord, the camouflage clad army of
waterfowlers are a resilient bunch
and ready to rebound.
Every year about this time
when a little north wind puts a
chill in the early autumn air, wa-
terfowlers get pumped up and be-
gin asking that redundant ques-
tion: “How does it look for the
upcoming season”?
That’s a popular question among
the ranks. Easy to ask; tough to
answer!
Here in Dixie, all water-
fowlers seem to be at the mer-
cy of Mother Nature and to her
mood swings. Weather is the pri-
mary factor on how duck seasons
come and go for us southern duck
shooters.
Last year was a prime exam-
ple. It was a warm season overall
with way too much water spread
out over several states, both here
and to our north.
Mix extended spells of warm
weather with flooding along the
Mississippi River in just about
every state that touches the big
muddy stream and it’s a tough
hurdle for duck hunters every-
where. That’s what happened
last year. Too much water; not
enough ducks!
Most veteran waterfowl-
ers say they can’t recall a sea-
son that was as poor as last year.
From the Bootheel of Missouri,
to the rice fields of Arkansas and
river bottom swamps and hard-
woods of Tennessee, Kentucky
and even down into Mississippi,
By Steve McCadams
FORECAST
It looks like we will have a better season in our region this year. Mallards coming in like these will be a
welcome sight to local “quacker smackers.” Photo by Rob Somerville
WATERFOWL
7. NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 7
ducks just didn’t show up for the
party. Some of the most popular
public hunting areas across the
five state region never reported a
significant influx of ducks when
aerial surveys were taken by state
wildlife agencies. Federal refuges
in the region didn’t attract ducks
and geese either, as most all sur-
veys reflected numbers below 5,
10 and 20-year averages!
High dollar hunting clubs on
private land suffered too. There
were a few exceptions---as there
always are---but overall, the lion’s
share of duck hunters were all in
the same boat last year.
For some it may be tough to
mount the level of interest needed
to jump back on the wagon this
time around. Duck hunting is an
expensive sport. It takes a lot of
time and effort to get going.
Even sporting goods stores
and manufacturers seemed to feel
the pain of a poor season. Shells,
shotguns, decoys, clothing and
more were left in inventory at
some major retailers. When hunt-
ers don’t do well, the economy
can suffer.
Yet with a new season fast
approaching, optimism has a way
of healing the wounds of a bad
season. Known to be some of the
most optimistic sportsmen ever
to slip on a boot, duck hunters
start getting that far-away look
in their eye as leaves begin to fall.
It’s just something in the
blood that fuels their fire. That
yearning to share a sunrise with
friends and dogs when season
arrives is a powerful magnetism.
It’s a force that’s hard to over-
come and even more difficult
to explain to the
non-believers!
So, how is
the season ahead
shaping up in
terms of the fall
flight forecast? No
one can control
the weather pat-
terns, but prac-
tically every wa-
terfowler wants
to know how the
numbers look
from the breed-
ing grounds.
If we do get
good weather and
cold fronts return
to their normal
patterns are duck
numbers suffi-
cient to set the
stage for a good
season ahead?
Inquiring minds
want to know!
From reports
by Delta Waterfowl, Ducks Un-
limited, U. S. Fish and Wildlife
Service plus input from the Ca-
nadian Wildlife Service comes
the following summary as to
how things went in the breed-
ing grounds of the Dakotas and
Canada.
North America’s spring duck
population declined, but most
species remain above long-term
averages, according to the 2019
Waterfowl Population Status Re-
port this summer.
The annual survey, con-
ducted jointly by the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service and Cana-
dian Wildlife Service since 1955,
puts the breeding duck popula-
tion at 38.90 million, a 6 percent
decrease from last year’s popu-
lation of 41.19 million, but still
10 percent above the long-term
average. The 2019 survey marks
the first time since 2008 that the
estimated breeding duck popula-
tion has fallen below 40 million.
“The fact that the numbers
are down is a reflection of last
year’s dry conditions for nesting
ducks,” said Dr. Frank Rohwer,
president of Delta Waterfowl.
“We know that production drives
duck populations, so it’s no sur-
prise that after a year of poor
production, the USFWS counted
fewer ducks.”
The graphic chart on numbers this year, compared
to last year, helps hunters gain a perspective on
trends. However, weather is always a big factor on
what lies ahead.
8. 8 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
There is good news to be
found in the survey. Mallards in-
creased 2 percent to 9.42 million,
19 percent above the long-term
average. Green-winged teal rose
4 percent to 3.18 million, 47 per-
cent above the long-term average.
American wigeon climbed slight-
ly to 2.83 million, 8 percent above
the long-term average.
Notably, gadwalls climbed 13
percent to 3.26 million, putting
them 61 percent above the long-
term average.
“The real surprise to me is
that gadwalls seem to be almost
drought-proof,” Rohwer said.
“They’re pretty amazing ducks.”
Other dabbling ducks de-
creased, but remain above long-
term averages. Shovelers declined
13 percent to 3.65 million, 39 per-
cent above the long-term average.
The largest decrease was observed
among blue-winged teal, down 16
percent to 5.43 million, but still
6 percent above the long-term
average.
“The bluewing estimate makes
sense,” Rohwer said. “Bluewings
didn’t fare well last spring given
the dry prairie, and didn’t pro-
duce many ducks.”
The only below-average
population estimate among pud-
dle ducks is for pintails, which
dropped 4 percent to 2.27 mil-
lion, 42 percent below the long-
term average.
“Many pintails settled in the
Dakotas seeking better water con-
ditions, as did all ducks,” Rohwer
said. “But the core of the pintail’s
traditional breeding range is in
southern Alberta, where they’re
down 79 percent, and south-
ern Saskatchewan, where they’re
down 85 percent. More than a
million pintails — almost half the
breeding population — settled in
the U.S. prairie this year.”
All three diving duck spe-
cies surveyed showed declines in
2019. Redheads fell 27 percent to
730,000, putting them right at the
long-term average. Canvasbacks
dropped 5 percent to 650,000,
but remain 10 percent above the
long-term average. And scaup
(greaters and lessers combined)
declined 10 percent to 3.59 mil-
lion, 28 percent below the long-
term average.
“I’m concerned that blue-
bills may return to restrictive har-
vest regulations, if their recent
population trend isn’t reversed,”
Rohwer said. “And we’ve been
living off high redhead numbers
for a long time, but we just had
Many pintails settled in the Dakotas seeking better water conditions,
as did all ducks.
Photo by Rob Somerville
Redheads fell 27 percent to 730,000, putting them right at the long-
term average.
Photo by Rob Somerville
9. NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 9
two average to dry years.”
“Overall both total ponds
and total populations of breed-
ing waterfowl in the Prairie Pot-
hole Region were down slightly,”
Ducks Unlimited Chief Scientist
Dr. Tom Moorman said. “How-
ever, important breeding areas in
southern Alberta and Saskatche-
wan were much drier than last
year, which contributes to re-
duced numbers of breeding wa-
terfowl observed in the survey.
Fortunately, eastern North
Dakota and South Dakota saw
an increase in both ponds and
breeding waterfowl, especially
mallards, blue-winged teal, gad-
walls, northern shovelers, and
northern pintails. Typically, when
the Dakotas are wet and south-
ern Alberta and Saskatchewan are
dry, we see the aforementioned
species settle in the Dakotas, re-
minding us that we must con-
serve habitat across the prairies
because it is rare for the entire
Prairie Pothole Region to be wet.
Ultimately, however, hunt-
ing success and numbers of birds
observed will vary with the on-
set of fall and winter cold fronts
and the arrival of winter condi-
tions necessary to force birds to
migrate, and also with regional
habitat conditions.”
“This year’s pond count and
nesting conditions are truly a tale
of two countries,” continued Del-
ta’s Frank Rohwer. “Canada is in
bad shape — it started dry and
got even drier. I haven’t seen por-
tions of Canada this dry since the
mid-1980s. However, the prai-
ries in the Dakotas started wet
and stayed ridiculously wet. The
problem is that while many of the
duck estimates in the U.S. are up,
it wasn’t enough to compensate
for dry conditions in a region as
massive and important to ducks
as prairie Canada.”
However, Rohwer told me
that production in the highly
wet eastern Dakotas region —
where mallards are up 54 per-
cent, pintails rose 64 percent,
bluewings jumped 19 percent
and total ducks are up 29 percent
— has been exceptional. That’s
good news for hunters, who shoot
the fall flight, not the breeding
population.
Even though breeding duck
numbers are down overall, the
U.S. prairies were incredibly wet
from south to north, which will
lead to strong duck production.
Conditions remained wet and ac-
tually improved
d u r i n g t h e
breeding sea-
son, with tem-
porary and sea-
sonal wetlands
retaining water
into July and
August.
“So when
the prairies were
dry last year, it
hurt duck pro-
duction, and in
turn, duck hunt-
ers,” he said.
“We saw it in
Louisiana and
elsewhere. But
this year, ducks
nested and re-
nested in the
U.S. prairies
with a vengeance and should
have high brood survival in those
landscapes.”
Strong production in the
U.S. prairies should also increase
the number of more easily de-
coyed juveniles in the fall flight,
compared to the savvy, adult
birds many hunters encountered
last season.
“There will be plenty of
ducks in the fall flight, and I ex-
pect duck hunters, especially in
the southern U.S., to have a better
season this year,” Rohwer said.
Tennessee duck hunters have
already put last year’s bad season
behind them. It’s what ahead that
matters most!
Editor’s note: Steve McCadams is
a professional guide and outdoor
writer from Paris, TN.
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12. 12 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
The Old Man
The old man figured he had
harvested more than his share of
whitetail deer in the sixty plus
years he had resided on this earth.
He found he had gone through all
of the stages of evolution a bow
hunter could experience.
As a young man he entered
the beginner stage where “ego is
king.” Bragging rights of harvest-
ing a deer were of the utmost im-
portance. Doe or buck, it didn’t
matter, because even seeing a deer
was rare during his youth.
In his early adult years, he mor-
phed into the “numbers game.”
Deer were more common, and
most of his peers judged your
hunting skills by the number of
deer you harvested in a season.
In his forties, he reached the
trophy stage. During this period
he enhanced his woodsmanship,
tracking and scouting skills. He
would study topographic maps and
venture into land that few hunters
had seen in search of quality racks.
Then, something he thought
would never happen, occurred
as he neared the age of sixty. He
seemed to no longer care about
the harvesting of a deer. He would
let bucks pass through his shoot-
ing lanes that other hunters would
have given a month’s wages just
to see!
Sometimes, he even left his
bow at home and just reveled in
the world of nature. That is, until
the afternoon he encountered the
Monarch.
The Monarch
Regardless of what region you
hunt in, there is always talk of a
monster buck being sighted some-
where nearby. Whether real or
imaginary, this buck sends chills of
excitement down hunter’s spines
and makes the hairs stand up on
the back of their necks. Tales of
these legendary bucks are shared
as hunters gather around camp-
fires, or recline in the warmth of
their hunting lodge. Very seldom
will you hear of one of these myth-
ical creatures being hauled into
a checking station with a tag on
their antlers. These stories are part
of the mysticism of deer hunting.
They are the reason you crawl out
of your warm bed at 4:00 in the
morning, walk miles in the frig-
id temperatures and sit on a hard
metal platform for hours at a time,
perched twenty-five feet in the air.
The old man enjoyed hearing
these stories as much as anyone,
but listened to them with a patron-
izing smile, knowing
what he was hearing
about were mainly
phantoms that exist-
ed in the mind of the
storytellers.
At least that’s the
way he felt until one
brisk autumn after-
noon, deep in a riv-
er bottom swamp, on
that momentous day
when the old man
regained the excite-
ment of the hunt. He
was sitting high up in a cypress
tree in his favorite strap-on stand
when it happened. He was chew-
ing on a handful of trail mix, in be-
tween mouth grunting at a yearling
buck. The fork-horn had amused
the man for nearly an hour, as
each time it started to meander
away he would grunt the curious
young deer right back in. Sudden-
ly the old man liked to choke on
raisins and nuts. In the clarity of
the frosty morning a loud guttural
echo had followed his last sequence
of grunts. The young yearling also
took notice and wasted no time in
evacuating the area at a sprint.
A Phantom Comes to Life
Loud footsteps crunched on
the frosted floor of the swamp.
Suddenly, an enormous buck, so
large it seemed surreal, emerged
from behind a blow-down. Nostrils
flaring out billows of fogged breath
in the coolness of the morning, the
behemoth walked in a stiff-legged,
dominant gait. Its hairs stood up
The Old Man
and the MonarchBy Rob Somerville
13. NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 13
in bristles along its back, and its
muscles rippled effortlessly as it
moved. The monarch’s rack was
huge. The walnut colored base
would measure at least ten inch-
es in circumference, and its tines
seemed to reach into the heavens.
This symmetrical twelve-pointer
was an old warrior, with lots of
white on its face and neck; show-
ing its age. It was the best buck
the experienced old man had ever
seen on the hoof. It was a living
legend, and it was real. The mon-
arch walked up to a four-inch di-
ameter swamp alder and thrashed
it to smithereens with the fury of a
tornado. Then it raised its head and
lip-curled, scent checking the air. It
caught wind of the only thing on
earth it feared … man. It immedi-
ately bolted, with hooves thunder-
ing across the bottom.
The old man felt his chest about
to explode and his brain had to
remind his lungs to take a ragged
breath. He heard a tapping noise,
which his subconscious identified
as a woodpecker gouging some in-
sects out of a dead tree. When the
adrenaline rush began to subside,
he realized that what he had been
hearing was no woodpecker, but
his left leg spasmodically jumping
up and down, causing his foot to
rap against the metal base of his
deer stand. Could it be that for the
first time in nearly thirty years that
the old man had felt the rush of
“buck fever”?
After he somewhat calmed
down, he eased his way gingerly
down the tree and began the long
walk back to his truck on some-
what “rubbery” legs. He realized
that he had become somehow
careless in the nonchalance of his
hunting techniques. Was old age
slowing down his mind along with
his body? Years ago that old buck
would have never winded him. Fi-
nally, after all these years he had
found a worthy adversary.
When he got to his cabin that
evening he carefully scrubbed his
hunting clothes in a spring-fed
creek and stuffed the pockets with
acorns and cypress needles. He
sharpened his broadheads with a
diligence and intensity he had al-
most forgotten he possessed. He
carefully checked out his bow,
and waxed the cables and string.
Grabbing his knee-length rub-
ber boots, he liberally
sprinkled the inside
with baking powder.
He retired to bed
early, only to begin a
nearly sleepless night
filled with visions of
the monarch of the
swamp.
He got up two
hours before sunrise,
amazed at his ener-
gy level after a rest-
less night’s sleep. The
old man arrived at the woods en-
tering from the down wind side
of his alternate stand site. He uti-
lized only the moonlight to navi-
gate his way through the swamp.
He was taking no chances with this
one. The monarch didn’t get to be
this old by being careless. The old
man would have to blend into the
woods, making himself virtually
invisible. His senses were honed
like a finely stropped razor. He was
a true hunter once again.
The Confrontation
The old timer sat in his stand,
as still as a statue, with all his sens-
es fine-tuned to the sounds of na-
ture. As the inky blackness turned
into the hazy grays of morning, he
reached into his pack for the re-
sealable plastic bag containing the
deer bladder and tarsal gland he
had removed from his freezer and
thawed out last night. He punc-
tured the bladder with the tip of his
knife, and soaked the tarsal gland
with the urine, tossing it lightly 20
yards in front of his stand.
He picked up the rattling ant-
lers he had knocked the dust off of
yesterday and clashed them togeth-
er vigorously, alternately raking
the tines together in an imitation
of two bucks in a full-blown fight
for domination. He continued his
rattling session for about two min-
utes, then reached behind him and
shook the cypress bough, which
thrashed the dry limbs together.
All the time he was doing this he
was making tending grunt sounds
with his mouth. He stopped the
commotion and held his bow ready
with an arrow nocked and leath-
er gloved fingers on the string....
waiting.
As he had envisioned it would
happen, the monarch appeared,
cautiously sniffing the thermal cur-
14. 14 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
rents. But it was to no avail today,
as the old man had set up down-
wind of where he felt sure the old
buck was bedding. Confident now
that he was secure, the monarch
caught a whiff of the urine-soaked
tarsal gland, and with his nose to
the ground he entered the clearing
headed for the old man’s careful-
ly trimmed shooting lane. As the
monarch’s massive head went be-
hind a huge cypress knee, the old
man slowly and steadily drew back
his bow. One more step and the
old man’s pin was directly behind
the huge animal’s broadside shoul-
der. The old man’s fingers began to
loosen on the string.
Then, as if with a will of their
own, they tightened back up and
he let down his bow. This motion
caused the magnificent creature
to jerk his head up and seeming-
ly stare into the old man’s eyes.
Within a fraction of a second the
monarch leaped effortlessly across
a nine-foot finger of the swamp
and disappeared as if by the wave
of a magician’s wand. The old man
sighed with a mix of emotions, but
eventually contentment won out.
He realized that he had just en-
tered the final stage in the evolu-
tion of a bow hunter.
He knew he had possessed the
skills and knowledge to harvest
this beautiful animal. But the en-
counter had given new life to his
old bones and heart and he desired
the need for others to feel the same
thrill he had felt on this momen-
tous day, so he had passed on the
double-lung shot.
He looked to the sky and
thanked the Great Creator for all
the marvelous gifts of nature He
had allowed the old man to en-
joy during his long life. Climb-
ing down from his stand on rock-
steady legs, he walked with more
pep in his step than he had in de-
cades, for he knew that he was now
a complete hunter. He had entered
the final stage as a hunter. He burst
out in a Gospel song and his spir-
it was full
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16. NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 16
West Tennessee lost a good one recently and many who will
remember Mr. Norman Yoder are readers of STO Magazine. I
personally feel that Mr. Norman was a hard-working and kind
man, who “walked the walk” of a man of God. Norman would
always greet people with a smile and take time out of his busy
schedule to visit with anyone he crossed paths with.
To relate as to the quality of this man, I will share a story
with you. I was going through a very rough time in my life and
really needed my spirits lifted. I happened to be delivering maga-
zines and was at Yoder Brothers Meat Processors to drop off three bundles of magazines. When I went back out to my
Jeep, I had a blow out on a tire and had no jack. I was out there staring at the tire and the patriarch of the Yoder family
came outside with one of his workers and Norman asked him to go get a jack and help me change my tire. I offered to
pay for the help and he simply said with a smile, “You just have a better day Rob.” That moment of kindness completely
changed my demeanor and lifted my spirits. I will always remember him for that.
Norman was born on 10/29/1957 in Stuarts Draft, VA, a little town nestled in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley of
Virginia. His father started a meat processing business, as well as farmed on the side, until he moved his family to Ten-
nessee in 1970. Upon settling, his father went into dairy farming.
In Norman’s early 20’s, he and a brother moved to Mayfield, KY and began a meat processing business. After 5 years,
Norman returned to Paris, TN in 1987 and co-founded Yoder Bros Meat Processing, along with another of his brothers.
It has remained a family business and has grown to 3 times its original size. Norman also operated a livestock and row-
crop farming enterprise.
Wild Game meat processing was one of the services that quickly rose to the top of the company’s reputation in the
West TN area. In past years Yoder Bros has processed up to over 2500 deer in a single season. In more recent years, the
processing of USDA inspected, and private labeled Beef, Pork and Lamb has enabled many West TN farmers to take
their farm goods to Farmers markets in the greater West Tennessee cities of Jackson, Memphis and Nashville and mar-
ket their products meeting legal requirements.
Norman was from a large family of 11 children. He and Mrs. Dorothy had eight children. The Yoder family has
decided to continue the family business.
Norman cared deeply about the community and has shared his success in numerous ways. He provided services and
products to local charities as well as discounts to not-for profit entities.
More recently, Norman purchased a retail store (Yoder’s Country Store) close to the Meat Processing plant. It has
become the retail point for the Beef, Pork and Poultry meats raised on the Yoder Family Farm.
In 2001 Norman completed a Dale Carnegie Training Course. During this course he won the Dale Carnegie “High-
est Award for Achievement”.
Norman was a deacon in the Mennonite Church since 1989 and was a devout man of faith.
I hope that all of you that have carried your deer to Yoder’s Brothers will take a moment to reflect on him the next
time you are sitting in a deerstand, during the quietness of the pre-dawn.
Rest in Peace Brother Yoder - Rob Somerville
Norman Yoder - A Tennessee Treasure
20. 20 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
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21. NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 21
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22. 22 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
Hello to all our STO Maga-
zine readers. I have had several
people over the last few months
ask me questions about how I use
the technique of pulling crank-
baits. In this article, we are go-
ing to talk about pulling crank-
baits for mid to late summer and
early fall crappie. We will discuss
different types of equipment and
tactics, and put together a general
game plan for pulling crankbaits.
We will call it a “crankbait crash
course” for anyone who wants to
give it a try.
Pulling crankbaits can seem
intimidating to someone who has
never done it before, but once
you start, it may become your
method of choice! Getting start-
ed just takes a little work and
research, and then some testing
and adjusting on the fly to make
it work for your situation. Let us
start out with equipment. Any
boat with a trolling motor will
work for pulling crankbaits. It
makes it easier if you have a troll-
ing motor that can be run from
a remote control. I fish out of a
24-foot SeaArk Big Daddy with
a Minn Kota Ulterra 112 pound
thrust trolling motor. I have my
boat set up to pull mainly from
the rear of the boat. Some crap-
pie anglers have their boats set
up to pull from the front of their
boat. It really comes down to how
your boat is designed and your
personal preference. The rear of
my boat is setup with a Millenni-
um Sidekick double fishing seat.
It will allow up to three people
to sit side by side across the back
deck of my SeaArk.
Next, come the pole racks. I
have a Millennium Spyder Loc
rod holder mounted on each side
the rear deck. Each rod holder
will hold 4 rods. As far as rods
go, the choice is up to your per-
sonal preference. My personal
choice is the B’n’M - Pro Staff
Trolling rods. I actually have two
sets of these rods. I have one set
of a dozen 16-foot rods that I use
for spider rigging and pushing
jigs out the front of my boat, and
another set that I use for pulling
crankbaits and longlining jigs
out the rear of my boat. The set I
use for longlining and crankbaits
consists of 2 rods for each length
of 12, 14, 16, and 18 feet. I use the
shorter rods on the inside of the
rack and the longer rods on the
outside of the rack. This helps to
keep your baits separated for less
tangles and messes.
Crankbait Crappie
Chad and Ashley Allen are pictured here pulling crankbaits on the Big Sandy portion of Kentucky Lake.
You can see Chad is measuring a crappie to make sure it meets the size regulations to be kept.
Photo by Author
By Cody Rodriquez
23. NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 23
Fishing with these eight rods
will let me cover a swath of water
around 44 feet wide. One of the
reasons I love to pull crankbaits
is because an angler can cover so
much water while doing so. If I
am pulling 1.6 miles an hour and
coving a 44 feet swath, I can cov-
er a lot of water acreage in a day’s
time of fishing. For my reels, I
have Okuma Magda 15 DX line
counters and Shakespeare ATS 15
LCB line counters. Both are good
reels and I have had excellent
service out of both. The Shake-
speare is a cheaper option, if you
are looking to save a few bucks.
Line counters are not necessary
for successful crankbait pulling
but they can definitely make it
more user friendly. All of my
reels are spooled with 14-pound
HI-VIS line.
Last, but not least, are the
crankbaits themselves. The crank-
bait conversation often comes
down to sounding like a Ford
guy, a Chevy guy, and a Dodge
guy having a truck talk! Once
again, this will eventually come
down to your personal preference
and what brand or brands work
best for you. I have two good
friends that are really experienced
at pulling crankbaits. If you get us
all together, you will hear three
different stories of what brand
each one likes the best.
One prefers Arkie brand 350
crankbaits, one prefers the Pico
crappie crankbaits and I have
had the best luck with the Ban-
dit brand 300 crankbaits. I am
not sure if I have a true prefer-
ence of brand or not, because
some days you will find me pull-
ing all three brands at the same
time! The Bandits dive deeper
than the Arkies with less line out
and have a little larger hook. The
Arkies seem to have more rattle
to them and are louder than the
Bandits. The Pico brand have in-
dentions on the sides of their
crankbaits that resemble the look
and texture of a golf ball. I real-
ly like that look because to me it
should displace more water and
put off more “fish signal.” There
are also several other lure compa-
nies that make crappie crankbaits
such as Jenko and Strike King. I
encourage you to try a couple of
each brand and see what works
best for you.
The next question that often
comes up is how do you know
how deep your crankbaits are
pulling? Bandit and Arkie both
have charts out that tell you how
many feet of line to let out to get
you to an approximate depth.
Bandit’s chart is made for troll-
ing 1.6 miles per hour and I have
found that Arkie’s chart works
well running that same speed. The
Pico brand crankbaits pull very
similar to the Bandit brand, so I
have been using the same chart
for those two. I had a vinyl stick-
er made of the depth charts and
applied it to the top of my Suzu-
Catching them two at a time!
Pictured here are two Kentucky
Lake slabs being “water skied”
to the boat.
Photo by Author
Here is a view that includes the right, side rear of the authors pulling
setup. You can see the B’n’M rods, the line counter reels, the Millenni-
um rod holder and the line depth chart on top of the outboard motor.
Photo by Author
24. 24 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
ki 225 outboard motor so that I
could use it for a quick reference
guide while pulling.
It really helps me to be able
to see the fish on my Hummin-
bird Helix 10 G2N fish finder,
on down scan mode, and then
be able to reference the crap-
pies depth to the chart and make
quick adjustments before the
crankbaits get to the crappie.
Now, on to the good stuff,
the fishing! When pulling crank-
baits, the wind plays a large role
in the direction I pull {95% of the
time, I pull the direction the wind
is blowing}. This makes for less
work on the trolling motor, so
your batteries last longer, hence
more fishing time. It also helps
keep your crankbaits down at the
desired depth. Pulling against the
wind allows the wind to get un-
der your lines and it applies lift
to your crankbaits. The wind will
not change your crankbaits depth
drastically, but could possibly
have a minor influence on them.
After you find a location you
want to pull your crankbaits, get
your boat positioned with the
wind and headed in the direction
you want to pull. All you have to
do is start fishing! Start out by
getting your boat up to speed.
Once again, my average speed is
around 1.6 MPH. After you have
your boat up to speed, it is time
to start putting out your crank-
baits. For example, if you are in
water that is 18 feet deep pulling
Bandit 300s or Pico brand crank-
baits and the crappie are 15 feet
deep, then you need to have out
around 91 feet of line (97 feet for
Arkie brand). If you have line
counter reels, you just let your
crankbait out to 91 feet and start
fishing. If you do not have line
counters, you can still get your
baits out accurately. Sticking with
our 91 feet of line out, if you have
a 14 ft rod you can let the line
out the length of the rod 6 and a
half times to get to 91 feet. Bran-
don Mayse taught me this and he
calls each rod length you let out
“a pull.” Therefore, a 14-foot rod
would be 6 and a half pulls to get
to 91 feet, where as a 10 foot rod
would need 9 pulls to get to the
same depth.
To do this, hold your rod up-
right and let your line out until
your crankbait is at the bottom
of your rod handle. Place your
crankbait in the water and let it
float away from you (remember
your running 1.6 MPH it does
not take long for it to float away).
As it is floating away place your
rod tip down towards the water,
as the line gets tight bring your
rod tip from the water straight up
to 12 o’clock while letting out line
as you do so. Repeat this process
five and a half times (you already
completed one pull when you ini-
tially let your lineout) and you
should be close to your 91 feet
mark. If the crappie are around
15 feet deep, I do not run all of
my crankbaits at 91 feet of line.
I like to mix it up a little, so if 91
feet gets me to 15 feet deep then I
am going to run my 8 baits some-
where between 87 and 94 feet.
This allows you to make sure you
are covering your targeted depth
zone. So, you do not have to wor-
ry about being dead-on accurate
if you are using the “pull method”
because you want a little variance
in your baits anyway.
The next question people often
asked is “How do you get a fish
to the boat without it getting tan-
gled in your other lines?” My first
Aidan Pruitt assists Luke Smith, as he drags in a nice Kentucky Lake
Slab and Jerry Rodriquez prepares to net the fish.
Photo by Author
25. NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 25
answer to that is usually “VERY
CAREFULLY!”
Actually, it is not as bad as one
might think, as long as it is not
a 10-pound catfish or a 5-pound
largemouth bass on the other end
of the line. I promise if you pull
crankbaits long enough you will
get a catfish or bass large enough
that it will cause you some trou-
bles with tangled lines. Another
reason I like to pull crankbaits is
that you never know what is go-
ing to be on the other end of the
line. I have caught crappie, large-
mouth bass, smallmouth bass,
white bass, catfish, sauger, and
several other species of fish while
pulling crankbaits on Kentucky
Lake. The key to limiting your
line tangles is soon as you see a
fish hit your bait, set the hook,
hold your pole upright and reel
as fast as you can. If it is a crap-
pie, it will come to the top of the
water and you can “water ski” it
all the way to your landing net.
As with starting anything
new, this adventure of pulling
crankbaits will have some trial
and error. I hope that this arti-
cle will give you a bit of a jump-
start into trying a technique that
may be new to you. There are also
some good resources to use on-
line. Facebook has several crap-
pie groups that are good places
to ask questions. There are peo-
ple in those groups that can give
valuable advice. I also encour-
age you to join Crappie.com. It
is another online forum that you
can use to ask questions. You
can look at other people’s ideas
that have worked and some that
have not played out so well. Until
next issue, stay safe on the water
and I wish you all tight lines and
screaming drags!
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Dave French proudly shows off
a nice largemouth bass that he
caught while pulling Bandit crank-
baits. A bass this size is a good
fight on a 16-foot B’n’M rod.
Photo by Author
26. 26 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
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28. 28 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
In the 21st century, there are
few families that can step outside
on a warm summer morning and
hear poultry clucking and cattle
bellowing in the field. Even fewer
will be taking a trip to the chicken
coop for eggs or to the garden to
get fresh vegetables from the vine.
Family farms have always been an
important part of our history.
Farmers are held in high esteem
in the United States and around
the world. In the past, people like
Thomas Jefferson believed strong-
ly that the farmer best exemplified
the kind of independence and vir-
tue that should be supported by the
world. The farmers respected and
revered over the years by Jefferson,
Smith, and others were a particu-
lar kind of farmer. Smith’s agrarian
farmer was an independent entre-
preneur who possessed the extraor-
dinary judgment and discretion
needed to cope with the vagaries of
nature. Jefferson’s yeoman farmer
was hard working and honest, with
a sense of spiritual connectedness to
the land. In later times, these same
basic virtues were used to describe
the family farmer.
A farmer doesn’t always have
to be a member of a family to car-
ry on the family farm with integri-
ty. When we think about the fam-
ily farmer many people think that
this ideal and life style is dying, but
to the family farmer it is not going
away. The family farm is one that
is owned by a family, even a large
family corporation. Family farms
includes more than 98% of all farms
in the U.S.
Many of these family business-
es are just agribusinesses, which
means that they are used to maxi-
mize the economic bottom line. In
the world of agribusiness, the family
farm of Jefferson and Smith is con-
sidered economically obsolete. On
family farms, the family, the farm
and the consumers are all insepara-
ble wholes. The sustainable family
farm is not just a means of making
a living but also a means of achiev-
ing a desirable quality of life, for
consumers as well as farmers eco-
nomically, socially, and spiritually.
However, the family farm is
making a comeback both in the
ideal and the reality sense. The
ideal and reality of family farming
could be the solution to social, eco-
logical, and economical problems
that we are all facing now. There
is a loss of interconnectedness and
interdependence with each other
and the world we live in. There are
a lot of consumers that are seeking
foods and products that are locally
grown by the family farmer. Such
descriptions of family farms are la-
beled as idealistic by those who see
agribusiness as the future of farm-
ing. There a lot of people that still
believe that these ideals of the farms
exist, and this is being supported by
hundreds of thousands of farmers
and millions of consumers across
the world. Sustainable family farm-
ers today are helping to reconnect
people with each other and with
FAMILY FARMING
IS ON THE RISEBy Jonathan Holden
Rebecca Holden is seen here teaching her two boys about farming, like
her dad did with her.
Photo by Jonathan Holden
29. NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 29
the earth. This is what drives the
buy local, organic, or natural food
movements in the U.S.
I wanted to look at two differ-
ent farms in west Tennessee to see
their background on the farm and
to see what their views were about
family farms. The first farm that I
interviewed was the Jones-Hill {a
part of Anderson Farms} that is
on Hog Wallow Rd., in Dyersburg,
TN and the other was Wilkerson
Farms located on State Route 105
in Trimble, TN.
While interviewing Mr. Eddie
Anderson it was clear that farming
was his way of life. The Jones-Hill
farm was traced back by Mrs. Vir-
ginia Ann Jones to 1870. She be-
lieves it may go back further than
that, but that is as far as the records
that she found show. The fami-
ly farm is a Century Farm, which
means the farm has been worked for
100 years of continuous Agricultur-
al Production. It is a huge honor to
have as a Century Farm since there
have been a lot
of hardships
that have taken
place in those
hundred years,
like the Great
Depression and
wars. The farm
has been passed
down for three
generations and
now is on to its
fourth genera-
tion as Mr. Ed-
die and Mrs.
Ann’s son {Jon-
athan} is now
running the
farm operation.
The farm had 90 acres in 1870 and
now the farm is up to 317 acres. At
the peak of Mr. Anderson’s farming
career, he had a 200 momma cow
operation on some of the land and
he row crop farmed nearly 7000
acres. Now he presently has around
3500 acres that they row crop farm.
When asked, what does family
farming mean to you? Mr. Eddie
responded “God, family, and the
world”. He explained that farming
meant the world to his family and
they wouldn’t trade it for anything.
He said over the years he has spent
in the field he has learned a lot of
lessons and had a lot of ups and
downs. In his 53 years of farming
he has never lost sight of what he
set out to accomplish and that was
to make an honest living and to be
able to pass the farming tradition to
his children. Mr. Anderson also said
that he felt that all the agriculture
community was family and that is
why he loved the Dyer County Fair
so much and stayed active in it for
so many years. He also contributes
his ability to farm so long to his wife
of 52 years and his family who has
stuck by his side through thick and
thin. He gives all the credit to God’s
graces and plenty of hard work.
The next farmer that I inter-
viewed was Mr. Richard Wilker-
son with Wilkerson Farms. Wilk-
erson Farms has been in operation
Mr. Eddie Anderson and his son - Jonathan Anderson
feel that family farms are the backbone of America.
Photo by Jonathan Holden
Farmers like Mr. Eddie have supported the community, which in turn,
supports him. In the farming community that is how strong bonds and
great friendships are made.
Photo by Jonathan Holden
30. 30 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
for close to 70 years. Mr. Richard’s
dad was row crop farming 350
acres and had livestock on the oth-
er 120 acres. He sold cattle, sheep,
sheep wool, pigs, and goats and he
told him that you can make more
money by walking grain out of the
farm on hooves than you can in a
truck. Mr. Richard started farming
with his father in high school and
still helps out his son in-law farm
today. The farm currently has 2200
acres that they own or lease to row
crop farm. Mr. Wilkerson’s daugh-
ter, son in law, and two grandsons
farm, and since he is now retired,
he still helps out from time to time.
When asked, what does family
farming mean to you? Mr. Wilker-
son responded, “I started farming
not for the money, but because of
my passion for agri-
culture and love for
the land.”
As the years went
by he told me that
his meaning of fam-
ily farming changed
from a way of life
to being able to pass
this tradition to his
daughter and grand-
kids. He said that the agriculture
community that he has dealt with
over the past 50 years has become
family and that is what you need to
be successful … family working to-
gether. He added that he is always
ready for harvest, because then he
gets to see what he and God have
grown. He added that he takes pride
in farming and strives every day to
do his best, saying there is a lot of
prayer and worship to god that also
goes along with being a farmer.
Family farms remain an essen-
tial feature of agriculture in the
United States. Family farms make
up 99 percent of America’s 2.1 mil-
lion farms and 89 percent of agri-
cultural production. Most farms in
the United States are small. Ninety
percent are small family farms that
operate nearly half of America’s
farmland. It is essential for us to
keep the ideals and way of life of a
family farm alive.
While interviewing these
two remarkable men, fathers,
farmers, and brothers in faith it
was evident that they keep God
first, then family, and to al-
ways be courteous to everyone.
These are two of what I see as
the models for the American
Family Farmer. It was my priv-
ilege to be able to talk to these
two true farmers; men that are
as compassionate about agri-
culture as I am.
Editor’s note: Jonathan Holden is
an Agriculture Education Teacher
at Dresden High School. His back-
ground is in Agriculture and Ani-
mal Science.
Mr. Richard Wilkerson has retired
and passed the tradition down to
Kris Holden his son in law, Rebecca
Holden his daughter, and their two
sons Hunter and Hayden Holden.
Photo by Jonathan Holden
To be awarded this sign your farm
has to have 100 years of continu-
ous agricultural production. This
is a high honor in the farming
community.
Kris Holden is moving equipment to
get ready for the next day of work.
His Wife Rebecca Holden and two
boys are in the vehicle behind him
taking him back and forth to get
the equipment.
Photo by Jonathan Holden
31. NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 31
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34. 34 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
October is National Farm to
School Month, a time to celebrate
the connections happening all over
the country between children and
local food. From taste tests in the
school cafeterias and nutrition ed-
ucation activities in the classroom,
to farm visits and school garden
harvest parties, farms, communities
and organizations in all 50 states.
The National Farm to School Net-
work was advocated for the creation
of National Farm to School Month
by Congress in 2010 and now or-
ganizes the annual celebration with
hundreds of partner organizations
across the country. This Month is
a great month to plan a farm to
school activity, organize a special
celebration of your current efforts,
or initiate a new partnership.
The question that most peo-
ple ask is “WHAT IS FARM TO
SCHOOL?” The farm to school
initiative is trying to help make
connection between communities
that have fresh, healthy food and
local food producers - by enhanc-
ing food purchasing and educa-
tion practices at schools and early
care and education sites. Farm to
school is a program that will give
more opportunities to address ra-
cial and social disparities in the ex-
isting food system and it will help
with the health of all school chil-
dren, farms, environment, econo-
my and communities.
The three core elements of farm
to school are procurement, school
gardens and farms, and education.
The procurement of the local pro-
duce and foods will add more access
and healthier school meals to more
than 24 million students across the
United States. It will also help the
income for local farmers. School
gardens and farms offer opportuni-
ties for the student body to develop
a sense of responsibility and con-
nection to their community. Help-
ing to educate the students about
food and farming will help to ele-
vate the need for local agriculture.
Another question that comes
about is “WHY DO FARM TO
SCHOOL?” When doing the farm
to school program the kids, the
farmers, and the communities all
win in the end. The kids win be-
cause every child gets a nutritious
locally grown meal, so that they are
ready to learn and are not hungry.
Also with this the activities can help
the kids learn about nutrition, ag-
riculture, health and food. Next
the farmers, fisheries, food pro-
cessors, food manufactures, and
The Weakley County Livestock Facility has a production farm consist-
ing of swine and bovine. They sell the animals either for show or for
meat.
Photo by Jonathan Holden
By Jonathan Holden
35. NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 35
ranchers. win because it is a great
steady financial opportunity. Lastly,
communities win because farm to
school will benefit students, teach-
ers, administration, farmers and
parents by providing opportuni-
ties to help build more community
engagement. If we buy locally for
the farm to school program it will
boost the local and state economy
as well as create more jobs at each
farm and school. This will also im-
pact economic development, educa-
tion, public health, and community
engagement.
The National Farm to School
Network, along with local food net-
works like the Northwest Tennes-
see Local Food Network, are hav-
ing meetings and hosting events
at schools across the United States
to help create networking between
farmers, schools, businesses and lo-
cal and state governments to help
initiate this program into their
school.
In Dresden, TN the Weakley
County Farm to School Kickoff
drew nearly 90 representatives of
business, government, and school
leadership to Dres-
den High School to
hear more about
the initiative and
offer input on ways
to increase farm
and school interac-
tions. The informa-
tion sharing and
gathering took the
form of surveys, a
farm tour, presen-
tations, and table
discussions over
plates of farm-to-
table produce and
sausage from the
Weakley County
Schools Livestock
Program.
“We’ve been noted as being the
‘last remaining’ farm of this kind
in the state,” said Weakley Coun-
ty Schools director Randy Frazier
after participating in the evening’s
instruction and vision-casting. “But,
we’d like to change that to ‘cur-
rently we are the only school-based
multi-species production farm.’
With collaborations like this one
with Northwest
Tennessee Local
Food Network, we
have the potential
to be a model for
other districts.”
The evening be-
gan with visitors
greeted by one of
many Dresden
FFA members who
were volunteering
to set up, explain
the livestock pro-
gram, and clean up
the school grounds
after the event was
over.
First, the visitors traveled by
hayride to the various barns located
on the Weakley County Livestock
production farm. Student farmers
Ben Ellis, Travis Platt, Kyle Elam,
Parker Maxey, Natalie Weidenbach
and Bennett Higgs served as tour
guides explaining the various as-
pects of large animal science, veter-
inary science, and small animal care
that students receive via hands-on
learning at this facility.
Bethany Allen, Coordinator of
School Health Director and a mem-
ber of the Farm-to-School plan-
ning team, provided an overview
of current ag-related endeavors in
county schools. She noted that each
school has a healthy school team, ag
is taught in kindergarten through
fifth grade classrooms in science
class, and each high school offers
ag. Sharon School has a several-bed
garden, county FFA programs have
greenhouses, and all county fourth
graders participate in an annual
Farm Day.
One week, students were asked to weigh in on the
taste of the sausages that are coming from pigs on
our Weakley County Production Farm at Dresden
High School. The young food critics have over-
whelmingly given the product a thumbs up.
Photo by Jonathan Holden
Jason Kemp, who teaches agriculture and serves
as an FFA advisor at Dresden, invited Congress-
man Kustoff on a tour of the farm to show him the
plans the farm has to provide, in partnership with
the Weakley County Schools’ nutrition program, a
farm-to-plate initiative.
Photo by Jonathan Holden
36. 36 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
Allen also addressed areas con-
sidered challenges to overcome.
She noted that 45.5% of the stu-
dent population were deemed
overweight or obese in 2018-19 by
health standards. Though all stu-
dents can receive a free breakfast,
more than 60% of our students are
eligible to receive free or reduced
lunches. Trista Snider, supervisor of
school nutrition, offered her com-
ments via video as she was attend-
ing a statewide conference on Tues-
day. She expressed gratitude to the
team’s efforts thus far and pointed
out that her goal was to expand op-
tions beyond the current sausage
served in the Dresden cafeteria to
offerings from more local produc-
ers. Since becoming an Agriculture
teacher at the high school level, I
personally have seen kids throw
their school lunch food away and
then at 3 P.M. watch them line up
at the fast food restaurants to get
food, because they are still hungry
after not eating the food at school
due to taste and processed foods.
“Anytime our students can grow
the produce themselves or be in-
cluded in the process, it helps them
to be open to trying new things,”
she said. Goyret agreed. “We’d like
our kids to know where their food
comes from,” she said, adding that
with Weakley County schools serv-
ing over a half a million lunch-
es each year in the farm to school
initiative also can mean economic
benefits. “When you source food
locally all the money stays in our
county. Not only do kids win by
getting local foods and eating fresh-
er, but farmers win as well, because
it’s providing them a solid income
base.”
Jason Kemp, ag teacher, FFA
advisor, and farm manager told the
crowd that in addition to working
through the process to provide US-
DA-approved sausage to not just
Dresden but eventually all county
schools, the program is currently
working with Tosh Farms to ensure
that students who, due to farming
realities, may not be returning to
family farms, will receive training
to go directly into a Tosh program.
“We’ve got a lot of things in
store,” Kemp concluded. “You’ve
got to dream big if you’re going to
get anywhere.” Those big dreams
include a veterinary science labo-
ratory, a meats lab and small-scale,
and a USDA processing facility.
Wendy Sneed who graduated from
the Dresden program and is now
a Tennessee Department of Agri-
culture business development con-
sultant attended the event and af-
firmed that such forward-thinking
was critical.
“We are no longer your grand-
daddy’s farm,” she said in a brief
conversation with Weakley’s Ca-
reer and Technical Education direc-
tor Lindsey Parham who was noted
several times throughout presen-
tations as helping to pave the way
for innovation in the county. “Over
the years, ag has become extreme-
ly technology-based and tech is go-
ing to be the way to bring in a new
generation of agriculture. Weakley
County is in a great position with
a forward-thinking CTE director
who has taught the curriculum and
comes as a fourth generation farm-
er and with Jason Kemp who, as
president of the National Associa-
tion of Agricultural Educators, has
traveled around the country and
can bring back innovative ideas to
utilize here.”
Guests had a meal prepared for
them that consisted of sausage from
the onsite farm, biscuits and gravy
from Simply Southern; breakfast
potatoes prepared with items from
Commissioner of Agriculture, Hatcher praised Weakley County Schools Production Farm. He said that
we have some work to do but we are going to make this happen.
Photo by Jonathan Holden
37. NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 37
Jill Magness Farms, Hidden Hill
Farm, and Barefoot Garden; hy-
droponically grown mixed greens
salad from Blackberry Pond Farm
and additional salad items from
Richard Turnbow and Turnbow
Family Farm; scrambled eggs from
Danna Stafford; homemade jams
and local honey; and fried pies from
Oma’s Country Kitchen. Keisha
Stafford, the cafeteria manager for
DHS, supervised the presentation
of the meal.
Before taking home apples from
Dixie Chile Ranch, they were asked
to discuss how they would com-
plete the sentence: I believe that a
successful farm to school program
includes.…” The visioning exer-
cise netted several responses which
were collected to inform the pro-
cess. Answers included noting the
financial advantages from reduced
food costs, raising chickens for eggs,
using hydroponics, educating stu-
dents in schools on career oppor-
tunities and producers on how to
inform the students of those oppor-
tunities and thereby grow the work-
force, a potential Weakley County
Ag Leadership program modeled
after Weakley County Leadership,
and a summer garden program.
Goyret concluded the evening
with an invitation for interested
persons to contact the Local Food
Network to learn more about be-
coming a part of the planning team
which is seeking a one-year com-
mitment from team members. This
is only one of the programs that are
happening across the United States.
There are lot of ways that you
can help out this program as both
teachers, school support staff, stu-
dents, school food services, farm-
ers, producers, families, and every-
one else. LFN co-founder Samantha
Goyret relayed that nationally, the
farm to school focus ranges from
taste tests in the cafeteria and nutri-
tion education activities in the class-
room, to farm visits and school gar-
dens. You can serve a locally made
snack at a daycare or preschool or
make a local farm visit to show the
students where food comes from.
As a family you can read a book
together about agriculture, cook
together or simply go to a farmers’
market together. For farmers and
ranchers, you can have farm tours
on your farm and show the public
what you grow and its value, talk to
the local school nutritionist and see
what your farm can offer them, also
share family recipes and take pro-
duce and locally grown food to your
farmers’ market. School admin-
istration can do in-service train-
ing teachers and employees on the
farm to school program, know the
positive benefits of working with
your hands and growing your own
food, and campaign for the farm
to school program. Also, the pub-
lic can let everyone at the schools
know how much you appreciate
their efforts on the program and
how you support it, participate in
the school and community gardens,
and talk to state and local represen-
tatives about the programs and how
they can support them. If we all try
we can help this program greatly.
The farmers, schools, businesses and local and state governments met at Dresden High School and collab-
orated on how they could help out the Farm to School program.
Photo by Jonathan Holden
38. 38 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
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42. 42 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
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44. 44 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
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46. 46 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
The frost was heavy, that
morning. The grass field shone
silver in the three-quarter moon.
He wondered how his hair and
beard must look, shot through
with frosty silver. Everything is
still in black and white.
He watched him come, slowly
and quietly slipping through the
frost-brittle grass. Still far enough
away as to not cause alarm. But,
worth watching. It was still a
monochrome morning, better for
smelling than seeing. He tasted the
wind, again.
To the east, just touching the
edge of the sky, dawn was com-
ing. It reminded him of a bowl
of golden oatmeal, tilted just so
the oatmeal reached the rim of
the bowl. It was cold and the
frost was heavy on the remain-
ing leaves of the white oak, just
a few yards in front of him. Once
again, he tested his safety harness
and rope.
He lay quietly, watching and
tasting the air. There was a light
layer of frost on his back. His ant-
lers blended with the tree behind
him. It was cold in the leaves on
which he lay. He watched the
man. His bones ached.
The sun came slowly, shifting
From cover, still in monochrome,
he watched the man cross the field.
The leaves on which he lay were cold. His bones ached.
A Single
Drop of Dew
By John L. Sloan
47. NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 47
through the trees, spotlighting
branches and slowly beginning
to melt the frost, turning it into
sparkling diamonds of dew. A
drop, one single drop, slowly
made its’ way to the edge of a
white oak leaf. There it hung.
Like my life, thought the
man. Like that single drop of
dew, I hang in limbo. Too old to
go back, just waiting to drop. As
the sun warms the leaf, just as
it warms by bones, the dew will
fall. As the clock ticks by, so will
I fall? He leaned back against
the tree, not really hunting. Not
searching for a tell-tale flick of
an ear or tail. Just thinking.
He is not alert. He is not
hunting as he has done in past
days. I could slip behind him,
easy. For some time, he and I
have played this game. But to-
day, much as it is with me, he
is just waiting.
The dew moved. Not much.
Another quarter-inch and it
would fall. Just a single drop of
dew. How close it is, he thought.
Not far to go. Maybe, much as
it is with me. Not far to go. But,
what a journey it has been. He
lightly touched the long scar on
his chest, flexed his back and
smiled.
He slowly turned his head
and licked the long scar on his
side. It had been close. He low-
ered his head, resting his chin
on the leaves. A drop of dew fell
near his nose. He swiveled an ear
and tasted the wind. Once again,
he looked at the man.
A light breeze moved through
the trees, still, the one drop of
dew held on. The man tasted
the wind, just touching his face,
ruffling his beard. Somewhere, a
murder of crows was torment-
ing an owl. A raccoon with
three young ones, shuffled by,
on the way home from a night
of raccoonery. Still, the single
drop of dew, held fast.
Crazy ‘coon, he thought.
Should have been in the hollow
tree an hour ago. The man saw
the coons. Saw the drop of dew,
too. Maybe he saw me…I doubt
it. The three of us. From frost to
dew, simply lying on a leaf. Is
that what it is all about?
And now, the sun began to
The shafts of sun began to penetrate the leaves, turning the drops of dew into diamonds.
48. 48 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
“We don’t cut corners .... we clean them”
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top the trees. It warmed his face
and then his toes. I could have
shot, he thought. I know he
knows I am here, just as I know
he is here. But why shoot? Soon
enough, the dew will drop and
the journey will be over for the
three of us.
A man, a deer and a single
drop of dew. The story of life.
He once again, lowered his
head to the leaves…and closed
his eyes. He heard it fall…
The single drop of dew.
The man dozed in the sun.
Ground fog began to rise and
out in the field, near a single
dew-laden tree, a young, lone
buck, accompanied by two tur-
keys, tasted a single drop of
dew.
Out in the field, near the dew-laden tree, a young, lone buck tasted a single drop of dew.
49. NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 49
WILKERSON’S TAXIDERMY
FROM A “MOUSE TO A MOOSE”
AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN!
TRUST WILKERSON’S TAXIDERMY
AND THEIR 30-PLUS YEARS
IN ALL PHASES OF TAXIDERMY!
STATE, NATIONAL & WORLD
AWARD WINNING TAXIDERMISTS!
1529 Morgan Rd - Dyersburg, TN
731-286-0853
AlBradshaw
1960-1999
421 W. COURT ST.
DYERSBURG, TENNESSEE
731-285-5767
sam@bradshaw4insurance.com
Sam Bradshaw
Contact information:
51. NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 51
While you’re hunting or fishing on Reelfoot
Lake, stop by and see Johanna and her crew
for a quick, delicious meal.
Or, beat the heat with their
“World Famous” ice cream.
Dine-in or eat outside on their Patio!!
Home Owned and operated
731-253-6311
HWY 78 - Tiptonville
Less than 5 min from Reelfoot Lake
“Something Different”
our hospitable
LICENSED INSURED
OWNER CODY WALKER
731-676-4796
Katelyn
Pharmacy Tech
Crystal - Pharmacy
Tech / DME
Kim
CPhT
Ginger
CPhT
Heather
Sales Associate
Christen
Sales Associate
Chasity
CPhT
Sydney
CPhT
Tiffany
CPhT
Emily
CPhT
Brandy
Pharmacy Tech
Sales Associate
Jerry
Delivery Driver
Jamie
Bookkeeper
Kalli-Rae
Sales Associate
Hillary
CPhT
Carolyn
Sales Associate
Krissie
CPhT
Here are two simple ways of telling us what you need and
we will take care of the rest.
1. Call us at 285-0844.
2. Come by and see us at our new location
at 2490 Parr Ave., Lewis Creek Place.
Have
you been
wondering
how to
join the
C&C
family?
• FAST FRIENDLY ONE-ON-ONE SERVICE
FROM LOCAL PHARMACISTS
(being locally owned means we support Dyer County not a
BIG pharmacy chain)
• ACCEPTANCE OF OVER 3,000
PRESCRIPTION PLANS
(including the new State Employee Prescription Plan-
Caremark) (your co-payment will stay the same)
• LOW PRICES ON ALL PHARMACY NEEDS
(we will match all competitors generic plans or programs)
• MOST CONVENIENT LOCATION IN TOWN
(with drive-thru and handicap accessibility)
• FREE DELIVERY ANYWHERE IN CITY LIMITS
(delivery also available countywide for small fee)
• MEDICARE BILLING
(for all your diabetic & durable medical equipment needs)
• IMMUNIZATIONS
(flu, shingles, school, job & travel vaccinations)
• PROFESSIONAL COMPOUNDING
PRESCRIPTION SERVICES
(for more information, visit dyersburgfyi.com/cande)
SERVICES TO LOOK FORWARD TO!!
Dr. Mark Brooks
PHARMACIST/OWNER
Dr. Emily Crum
PHARMACIST/OWNER
Dr. Kevin Cook
PHARMACIST/OWNER
52. 52 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 201952 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
Robert “Doc” Jackson with a big Pickwick smallie!
Here is young hunter Alex Dye once more, with his1st deer ever that he shot on Oct 27,th 2019 againwhile hunting with his Papaw.
Photo submitted by Terry Wilkerson
Lynn Parker caught these nice, slab crappie at Lake
Enid, Mississippi recently.
Alex Dye harvested his first
turkey ever – with a little
help from his Papaw, last
April.
Photo submitted byTerry Wilkerson
55. NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 55JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 55
OUR EXPERIENCED STAFF IS HERE TO FILL YOUR
EVERY NEED DAY OR NIGHT!
DYERSBURG ELEVATOR COMPANY
300 PRESSLER RD - DYERSBURG, TN - 38024
731-287-7272
SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2019 | SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS 55
56. 56 SOUTHERN TRADITIONS OUTDOORS | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2019
We're Married
toFarming
www.FirstCNB.com
We're Married
toFarming
www.FirstCNB.com
We're Married
toFarming
www.FirstCNB.com