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Marv Van Peursem is a volunteer who has turned lifelong agricultural experiences
into an opportunity to serve others. Several days each month, he conducts tours
at the Agricultural Heritage Center at the Lohr/McIntosh Farm for groups of all
ages.
Marv grew up on a farm in
Iowa, and has always been involved in farming or agriculture in one way or
another. One of his first jobs was at John Deere, where he did design work for a
cotton-harvesting machine. He worked in New Holland, Pennsylvania, for five
years, where he met and married his wife. Then he headed back to Iowa, where he
started his own company, manufacturing equipment for hog farmers.
He and his wife decided
that after retirement, they wanted to be near their family, and Longmont seemed
the perfect place for them. Longmont was a farming town, where the sugar beet
industry had been a huge cash crop, dating back to right after the turn of the
century. The soil there was fertile and the altitude didn’t affect the crops
that much once the farmers learned how to irrigate. Marv pointed out that
farming would never have been successful if farmers hadn’t learned how to get
water here from the snowmelt.
About four years ago,
Marv saw an article in the newspaper seeking volunteers to lead tours at the
Heritage Center. It seemed a perfect way for him to share with others his
knowledge and experiences. He had not had the opportunity to share his passion
for farming while he was working full-time, and he looks upon his volunteer work
as an opportunity to help visitors learn more about the heritage behind farming
and better acquaint them with farm equipment and machinery.
Marv especially enjoys
interacting with the kids who visit the center, most of whom have never been on
a farm. He engages them by asking questions and guiding them through some
“hands-on” experiences. He told one little girl, “When I was your age, this is
how we milked the cow,” and let her experience this with a fiberglass cow at the
farm. He feels this is the best way to get kids involved and stresses to them
the importance of noticing and identifying what they see in the farms and fields
as they drive past them. For more information about this volunteer program,
please contact Tom
McMichen, (303) 776-8848,
tmcmichen@bouldercounty.org
Bonnie Booth, Volunteer
Spotlight Writer |
