Harpers named Farm Family

Harpers say they were surprised to be chosen for honor.

"Surprised" is how Keith and Georgia Harper described their reaction to the news they had been selected Benton County Farm Family of the Year. The Harpers intentionally limited their chickengrowing operation to two houses to give them more time for their family and community. In addition to raising their three daughters, Keith is an elder and lay preacher at the Church of Christ in Springtown. Georgia spends much time as a 4-H leader and gardening mentor for the Bloomfield 4-H Club.
"Surprised" is how Keith and Georgia Harper described their reaction to the news they had been selected Benton County Farm Family of the Year. The Harpers intentionally limited their chickengrowing operation to two houses to give them more time for their family and community. In addition to raising their three daughters, Keith is an elder and lay preacher at the Church of Christ in Springtown. Georgia spends much time as a 4-H leader and gardening mentor for the Bloomfield 4-H Club.

— Keith and Georgia Harper got away from life on the farm as a young married couple but have never regretted returning to their roots.

The Harpers were named Benton County Farm Family of the Year for 2012 on Friday. State Rep. Mary Lou Slinkard, R-Gravette, presented the couple with a proclamation from the House of Representatives; and Kyle Wagner, a member of 3rd District Rep. Steve Womack’s staff, read a letter of congratulation to the Harpers. Benton County Judge Bob Clinard read a proclamation detailing the Harpers’ work and family history and their efforts to keep abreast of the most modern technology and management practices.

“The Harpers represent America at its finest,” Clinard said.

Jim Singleton, chairman of the Benton County Farm Bureau’s Farm Family selection committee, said the Harpers are the 65th Farm Family of the Year for Benton County. Singleton said the Arkansas Farm Bureau has been honoring farm families since 1947.

Singleton said the Farm Bureau looks at a variety of criteria in choosing its honorees. He said the use of modern farming practices and standards is one area,and community involvement is another. Keith Harper has been a member and past president of the Gentry School Board, while Georgia has been active in the Parent Teacher Organization, 4-H Club, the Farm Bureau and the Benton County Extension Council, Singleton said.

“We’ve had an abundancedown the years, of excellent families to represent us here in Benton County,” Singleton said. “This is just one more example.”

The couple have built achicken-growing operation on 10 acres off Cripps Road west of Gentry. While Keith works full time for Tyson Foods, Georgia handles the day-to-day business of growing broilers for Simmons Foods.

Both Keith and Georgia grew up on small farms and never intended to leave that life.

“When we got married, we moved to Gentry,” Georgia Harper said, to which Keith added, “We couldn’t wait to leave the big city.”

The couple bought their farm around the time the first of their three daughters was born. They raised cattle for a few years, then a family emergency took them in a new direction.

Keith’s father was a poultry producer, and health problems forced him to take some time off. Keith and Georgia took over theoperation while he recovered and found the situation suited their needs and interests.

With a growing family and Keith’s outside job requirements, the couple thought a small poultry growing operation would give them the added income they wanted while giving Georgia time to raise the girls and remainactive in the community.

“It was a deliberate decision,” Keith said of their choice to limit the size of the growing operation. “We wanted this to be somethingthat would be a part-time job for Georgia, allow her to chase our three kids in school and still add to our income.”

The couple have kept their operation at two chicken houses with a capacity of about 21,000 broilers each.

“At the time we built the chicken houses, we had to make a decision,” Keith said. “Did we want to keep it at two houses or build a third? We decided to stay with two, and there’s been times when we’ve looked at each other and said three would’ve been just too much.”

The Harpers said the biggest technical change in their chicken operation has been the shift from natural ventilation to “tunnel” ventilation. The tunnel ventilation systems allow the operatorto control the temperature and humidity level in the houses by computer, he said. The operation has also invested in other technology aimed at saving energy.

The Harpers’ three daughters - Kristen Patterson, Allison Macias and Jillian St. John - are all married and working at jobs unrelated to farms.

“The biggest change, really, has been the kids growing up and leaving home,” Georgia said. “We’re proud of them, and we’re glad they had the opportunity to grow up on the farm. We think it helped mold them into the people they are today.” Farm Bureau Award Presentation by Jim Singleton

Today we are participating in the 65th Annual Arkansas Farm Family of the Year program. Every yearsince 1947, this program has served as a vehicle to recognize outstanding farm families throughout the state. The objectives of the Farm Family of the year program are three fold:

◊Give recognition and encouragement to farm families who are doing an outstanding job on their farm and in their community.

◊To gain recognition of the importance of agriculture in the community and state.

◊To disseminate information on improved farm practices and farm management.

Certainly the family wehave selected today personifies those attributes. So, therefore, at this time I would like to announce the 2012 Benton County Farm Family of the Year is awarded to the Keith Harper Family from Gentry.

Just a few words about the family and their operation: Keith and Georgia are poultry farmers, operating a broiler farm for Simmons. Keith is also employed by Tyson Foods. Both have been very active in the community. Keith served several years on the Gentry school board, nine years as president, and is active in their church.Georgia has been involved in the Gentry Parent Teacher Organization, Bloomfield 4-H and the Benton County Women's Committee.

They have three children, Kristen, Allison and Jillian. All three have married and moved off the farm, but all were very active in 4-H when they were younger.

Citation from Arkansas House of Representatives

The Harper Family - Keith and Georgia, along with daughters Kristen, Jillian and Allison - are to be commended for being named the 2012 Benton Co. Farm Family of the Year, which was awarded to them for their dedication, success and longevity in agriculture in Arkansas; and, whereas, The Harper Family, which has been farming for 21 years and has a poultry farm with approximately 250,000 broilers grown annually, has made it their goal to stay ahead of the learning curve with innovative agricultural techniques and practices, which has made this family a leader inagriculture; and, whereas the House of Representatives of the Eighty-Eighth General Assembly of the State of Arkansas takes great pride in recognizing the Harper Family for being named the 2012 Benton County Farm Family of the Year and wishes them every success in the future.

Therefore, pursuant to the motion of Representative Mary Lou Slinkard, the Arkansas House of Representatives directs that this citation be presented on this 15th day of June, 2012.

News, Pages 1 on 06/20/2012