Barn Boards and Baling Wire

John Sumwalt For Agri-View
Jul 20, 2025
Jul 20, 2025

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The Rev. Marc Blakesley serves as Transitional Pastor with Peace United Church of Christ in St. Cloud, Minnesota. He has lasting memories of his father on the farm.

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Marc Blakesley poses with his father, Harold Blakeley. He says, ‘My dad always loved the land – rich dirt to plant things in. That’s what a graduate of the West Central School of Agriculture in Morris, Minnesota, does. But if your career is truck driving and farming is in your blood, then you haul agricultural supplies during the week and on weekends you work in your own garden soil.’

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John Sumwalt For Agri-View

I cherish the memories of working with my father on the farm. Whether it was milking cows, baling hay, sawing wood, planting corn or fixing fence, there was that unique earthy comradery that still warms this old farm kid’s heart.

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John Sumwalt new mug 2024 — John Sumwalt

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John Sumwalt is a retired pastor and the son of dairy farmers. He is the author of “Shining Moments: Visions of the Holy in Ordinary Lives.” Email johnsumwalt@gmail.com or call 414-339-0676 to reach him.