Greg Shooks of Central Lake grows cherries, wine grapes, and small grains on his fourth generation farm, where he works with his brother and cousin. The wine grapes are new, because last year they sold their 550 head of cattle and built a winery – Cellar 1914, with a nod to the year his family started the farm. They actually built the winery in the same footprint they were housing the cattle. As Greg said, “We’re just like a country song now. We’re serving wine in an old cattle barn and parking in the feed lot.” Greg, his wife Jenny, and their three daughters enjoy boating and traveling – especially to warm places.

Listen as Greg talks about:

• How maraschino cherries are made, and what he knows you have in your fridge
• What two things you should never buy that he did – but enjoys
• Why having kids is like running a correctional facility
• How the first year of growing grapes really changed their direction
• Why he eloped with his high school sweetheart

https://www.cellar1914.com/

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Thanks for listening and come back soon to hear about more people, foods and places that are Michigan AF!

Isaiah Wunsch farms cherries and apples on Old Mission Peninsula, and he also owns a cherry and apple packing and marketing business. After graduate school at Michigan State, he worked for the Michigan Economic Development Corporation as their agribusiness specialist. He’s part of the Michigan Cherry Commission, his township board, the school board, and Michigan Farm Bureau. He enjoys touring farms in other countries, mountain biking, and cross country skiing.

He talks about:

• His first farm job as a 9-year-old
• His farm tours in Kosovo and Thailand, and his upcoming one in Columbia
• Why he came back to farming and what he likes best about it
• A farmer’s favorite apple, and the best time to eat cherries
• The intensity of 20-hour workdays during harvest

Connect with Michigan GROWN, Michigan GREAT:

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• Checkout our website at MichiganGrown.org
• Want to be featured as a Michigan AF business? Email us!

Thanks for listening and come back soon to hear about more people, foods and places that are Michigan AF!

Cora Okkema is studying Livestock Behavior and Welfare under Dr. Temple Grandin at Colorado State University. Her interests include fresh heifer wellbeing, newborn calf care, and crossbreeding. She was born in the Netherlands and moved to the U.S. in 1999 with her family, where she grew up on their dairy farm. Before graduate school, she spent two and a half years as a herdsman on her family’s farm. She recently won the Michigan Farm Bureau Young Farmers Discussion Meet, and she will be competing at the national competition in January. In her free time she loves what she calls the simple things, like bowling, going to new restaurants, and walking in the mountains.

Listen as she talks about:

• What she hopes to accomplish working with
• Temple Grandin
• What it was like to compete in the discussion meet
• How her family works together on the farm
• What Dutch food she loves
• Her upcoming first skiing trip

De Grins Oer Dairy Facebook Page

 Cora’s LinkedIn

Connect with Michigan GROWN, Michigan GREAT:

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• Want to be featured as a Michigan AF business? Email us!

Thanks for listening and come back soon to hear about more people, foods and places that are Michigan AF!

Elise Thorp started Trillium Wood Farm with her sister, Allie. They were both vegetarians, but they decided to experiment with raising meat for themselves and friends. Seven years later, they are raising hogs, lambs, chickens and turkeys as their full-time jobs. They handle all the aspects of the business from raising the animals, to farmers markets, to online sales and shipping. Outside of work, Elise loves to eat at different restaurants, go to music shows, and cook curry, which she fell in love with when she studied abroad in India.

Listen as she talks about:

• The questions her customers have about the animals’ diets, shelter, and harvest
• How she likes to hibernate in the winter
• The benefits of working with your sister
• The usefulness of farming Facebook groups
• Her interest in nutritional therapy

Trilliumwoodfarm.com

facebook.com/trilliumwoodfarm/

Connect with Michigan GROWN, Michigan GREAT:

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• Checkout our website at MichiganGrown.org
• Want to be featured as a Michigan AF business? Email us!

Thanks for listening and come back soon to hear about more people, foods and places that are Michigan AF!

Caleb Stewart raises hogs, grows cash crops, and buys and sells farm equipment.  After graduating from Michigan State, he started farming with his parents, Carol and Jim.  Three years ago, he and his wife Teresa, along with their two kids, became sole proprietors in Bannister.  Caleb loves traveling, going to Houghton Lake with his family, and volunteering for ag organizations.  He is currently getting his private pilot’s license.

Listen as Caleb talks about:

• Why he calls his barn the Hog Hilton
• The three-year process to turn his crop farm organic
• How his parents’ lake house is one Disney movie away
• What different conversational topics there are for pilots
• What advice he has for new business owners

www.stewartfarmsmi.com

Connect with Michigan GROWN, Michigan GREAT:

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• Want to be featured as a Michigan AF business? Email us!

Thanks for listening and come back soon to hear about more people, foods and places that are Michigan AF!

Mike Klumpp and his wife Jaime own AgMarvels, where they help hemp farmers grow, process, and sell their crop.  They also grow their own hemp, as well as corn, soybeans, and wheat.  Mike and Jaime are entrepreneurs, and the hemp business is just one of many of their current endeavors.  Between farming, crop insurance, rental properties and four kids, they do find time to go south in the winters – then head back to the businesses they love.

Listen as Mike talks about:

• AgMarvels’ own brand of CBD products – for women and men
• How hemp is harvested, dried, and extracted
• His son, already a budding entrepreneur
• Why work is not really work to him
• What people mostly ask him about hemp farming

agmarvels.com

Connect with Michigan GROWN, Michigan GREAT:

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Thanks for listening and come back soon to hear about more people, foods and places that are Michigan AF!

Jim and Jean Reverman grow and sell Christmas trees from Reverman Farms in Grand Ledge.  They have recently started painting trees – not just green, but purple, pink, and even a patriotic red, white & blue.  When he’s not shearing trees, Jim also works for the Michigan Department of Transportation.  The couple has three adult children. 

Listen as Jim talks about:

• Their Christmas tree that lasted until March
• The trees that keep their needles best, and the ones that are the worst
• The horse-drawn carriage, farm animal, and family experience they offer
• What islands he travels to for work
• How he accidentally became a tree farmer

www.facebook.com/Reverman-Farms-100927309347

Connect with Michigan GROWN, Michigan GREAT:

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Thanks for listening and come back soon to hear about more people, foods and places that are Michigan AF!

Mike Mathis is the director of MSU Tollgate Farm and Education Center, which gives 22,000 visitors a year the chance to experience hands-on agriculture.  From milking goats to growing kale, the farm offers a variety of programming and camps for the community.  After growing up on a crop and livestock farm, Mike taught middle school in a windowless classroom and knew he liked the people part - but not the indoor part.  He is beginning the Farm Bureau ProFILE leadership program, he plays vintage baseball, and he enjoys going to his favorite park with his wife Corinne and 10-month-old son Owen.

Listen as he talks about:

• Why you should take your shot even if you interviewer doesn’t seem too excited
• How he envisioned being Indiana Jones
• What ‘good food’ means to the farm visitors and him
• What it’s like to play baseball with 1865 rules
• How he helps organize the largest 4-H day camp in Michigan 

www.canr.msu.edu/tollgate

Connect with Michigan GROWN, Michigan GREAT:

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Thanks for listening and come back soon to hear about more people, foods and places that are Michigan AF!

Jeff VanderWerff farms in Western Michigan, where he and his family grow 2000 acres of corn, soybeans, and apples.  He’s currently transitioning his orchard into an organic operation.  A self-professed salesman at heart, he also started an ag retail business named Gold Coast Sales LLC.  He lives in Kent City with his wife Alyssa, a cancer researcher, and two daughters.  As an advocate of speaking about agriculture, he recently hosted Oprah on a tour of his farm.  He loves Michigan State University sports, snowmobiling, and golfing every summer Wednesday – no matter what. 

Listen as Jeff talks about:

• His past as a full-time firefighter
• Misconceptions about conventional vs. organic farming
• How important optimism is in a year like this one
• What happens when a kid says ‘Go get the key – I dare you’
• Why work shouldn’t be your entire life

Connect with Michigan GROWN, Michigan GREAT:

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• Checkout our website at MichiganGrown.org
• Want to be featured as a Michigan AF business? Email us!

Thanks for listening and come back soon to hear about more people, foods and places that are Michigan AF!

James Weber of Weber Family Dairy milks 130 Jersey cows and raises crops on his Frankenmuth farm.  A graduate of the MSU Ag Tech program and Cal Poly, (California Polytechnic State University), he returned to Michigan in 2015 to reopen his parents’ farm.  He now works with his parents, Duane and Sandy.  He recently was named Outstanding Young Dairy Cooperator by the Michigan Milk Producers Association, and he was also elected Chair of the National Young Cooperators Program for 2020.  He enjoys playing sports, finding inside work during the winter, and laughing about travel experiences – good or bad.            

Listen as James talks about:

• How his girlfriend Kylie’s post about cats compared to all the others
• Why it’s hard to list all of the aspects he loves about Jerseys
• Why he moved from California to Michigan even though he doesn’t like the cold
• The many ways his mom is a watchdog
• Sand volleyball, golfing, and seeing places that take your breath away

www.facebook.com/weberfamilydairy

Connect with Michigan GROWN, Michigan GREAT:

• Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter
• Checkout our website at MichiganGrown.org
• Want to be featured as a Michigan AF business? Email us!

Thanks for listening and come back soon to hear about more people, foods and places that are Michigan AF!