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Annual Beltie Magazines
The Belted Galloway Society has produced full-color, 36- to 44-page magazines annually since 2004. An extracts from one of the publications is accessible below. Obtain copies of the most recent printed edition by sending a request with your snail mail address to the Executive Director at Email: executivedirector@beltie.org.
Supporting Our Troops!
Chad Trenary, while a helicopter pilot serving
in Iraq, remained at heart a farm boy from Kansas. In a break from military
pressures he joined our Beltie Forum to "talk cows."
Chad wrote, "I have been in Iraq since August of "07 and am just about done. This is my 3rd tour. I only have a few years left until I retire and plan on staying right there on the farm in Kansas. We had seen a few Belties and thought they looked neat. When my dad showed an interest we started to actually look into them and were very impressed with their foraging habits and ability to produce grassfed beef. Before my last deployment we found some just 7 miles down the road and my dad and uncle bought the majority of the herd; I bought a little bottle-fed heifer for my daughter. From then on we were hooked."
While Chad was in Iraq his wife Wendy and four children Schuyler, 13, Hunter, 11, and Chelsey and Tristan, 7, ran the Trenary"s 80-acre farm in Enterprise, Kansas. Chad wrote, "If something comes up that they can"t handle Wendy calls the church or the Navarre Lions Club and, whatever the problem is, someone will get it taken care of."
Among the correspondents Chad met on the Forum was Steve Nelson at Blackstone Valley Belted Galloways in Hardwick, Masschusetts. All of us may feel strongly about supporting our military, but Steve is rare in that he elected to do an extraordinarily generous thing. He said, "Chad had written that he wanted to get some Belties when his tour was up. We had 26 in our herd so I sent him an e-mail to ask if he"d be offended if I gave him a couple to get him going. I made the offer because I appreciated that Chad made a huge sacrifice to be in Iraq flying med evac helicopters. I just hope his kids can get something out of raising the Belties. What the heck, the real hero is his wife! Plus, I love these animals so much that I like to involve as many people as possible."
Chad says, "Steve wrote to welcome me to the
Forum and said that he would like to donate a couple of cows to my family
as a token of his appreciation for my service to our country. I responded
that I was honored and would love to have some of his cattle. I was so
excited and amazed at his generosity!"
Efforts to get the cattle moved from Massachusetts
to Kansas hit some snags, but another generous offer emerged when Chad"s
aunt and uncle in Oklahoma put "Operation Beltie" into play. Bill and
Katie Bliss said, "When we heard of Steve"s beautiful gift we began planning
a trip. We had some Belties and wanted to increase our herd, so on learning
that Steve had cows available we packed up the pickup and trailer and
headed for Massachusetts in June.
"We bought three pregnant cows from Steve and loaded them up with Chad"s two. We felt the cattle shouldn"t be moved more than 600 miles a day, as they needed to be watered, exercised and fed. We started making phone calls, and found hosts at a dairy farm in Annville, Pennsylvania who would off-load the Belties. They provided the cows with hay and water and wouldn"t accept any payment.
"Our next stop was in Englewood, Ohio with the friend of a casual acquaintance we had made on the way out. Charlie provided the cattle with a beautiful grassy area and was so helpful!
"Our final stopover was in Lebanon, Missouri with a delightful young couple who graciously offered space and care."
The journey was a pleasure for Bill and Katie, who summarized, "It restored our faith in the provisions of our Lord and in the goodness of the citizens we had the privilege to meet. We will never forget this voyage!"
Chad finally arrived home in December, 2008. He said, "The cattle made it to Kansas in good shape and have made themselves quite at home on the farm. On August 8th Melz gave birth to a beautiful little bull calf. He is up and running and doing great.
"I have been nothing shy of amazed at the generosity we encountered. People giving away cattle to show appreciation? Folks letting strangers stop to let their cattle spend the night? These are things that you only hear about, things that used to happen back in the old days, things that you might see in an old western movie.
"I told Steve that there is no way that I will ever be able to show my gratitude for his generosity, no one has ever been so kind. He and the folks that helped out Bill and Katie have restored my hope for America. If you"re ever driving through on I-70 and have time for a cup of coffee or need to let your cows stretch their legs, I am only 10 minutes off the interstate, give me a call!"
Steve adds a postscript: "Chad sent my wife and me a flag that had been attached to the chopper he flew, along with pictures. It"s something I will cherish forever. Probably a little corny, but the older I get the more I realize what a wonderful place America is, and that the people for the most part are awesome."
