By Barb Lumley
The Impact of Plainfield Herd Reduction Sale was held at 11:00 a.m. Friday, March 3, 2023 at the farm located near Belmont, Ohio. The farm was also a tour stop during the Ohio Holstein Association Convention and Annual Meeting held on March 3 & 4, 2023. The Plainfield Holstein herd was established in 1944 by Orville Simpson, Jr. and his wife Betty and is now owned by Donald and Danette Simpson. The registered Holstein sale averaged $2094 on sixty four (64) live lots. Cattle sold to Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Indiana and Ohio.

Topping the sale at $3,400 was Lot 9, Plainfield Slater Blessing, a daughter of Walnutlawn Slater. Classified Very Good 86 at 2-09 and with more points to come, she is due to calve in June to Eye Candy. Her dam is the well-known show winner, Jacobs Sid Bubble-ET classified Excellent 93-3E. She was purchased by Randall Kiko, Salem, Ohio, and Don Simpson.

Selling for $3,000 was Lot 40, Plainfield Uno Maybelline, born 9/05/22. A fancy Fall Calf sired by Our-Favorite Undenied, she will be parading the show ring in 2023. Her dam is Plainfield Crush Mallory classified Very Good 86 and with eight (8) Very Good and Excellent dams in her pedigree including the well-known Rudy Missy. Six dams in the pedigree have records from 30,800 to 40,880 pounds of milk. She was purchased by Clay Hershberger, Sugarcreek, Ohio.

Lot 64 Plainfield Admiral Rome RC was an added lot and sold for $3,000. A Fall Calf born 9/06/22, she is sired by Luck-E Undenied Admiral. Her dam, Plainfield Warrior Rival-Red, was classified Good Plus 83 at 2-09. The second dam is Pine-Tree Rebel 6841-Red classified Excellent 91-2E. She has nine (9) dams in her pedigree classified from Excellent 90 to Excellent 96-4E and with milk records to 38,920 pounds. She was purchased by Ack-Lee Holsteins, Jay & Kristy Ackley, East Liberty, Ohio.

Auctioneer for the sale was Randall Kiko with Rudy Kiko reading the pedigrees, both from Salem, Ohio. Chad Griffith, Bethel, Ohio took the bids on Cowbuyer. The sale was managed by Kiko Auctions, Canton, Ohio.

By Barb Lumley

The Ohio Holstein Convention Virtual Sale was held at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, March 3, 2023 at the Wingate by Windham Hotel in St. Clairsville, Ohio. The registered Holstein sale featured live animals, embryos, choices and IVF sessions. The sale averaged $3,310 on thirty one (31) consignments.

The top price was $16,000 for Lot 2, Pine-Tree 688 Empow 9724-ET, a Fall Calf born 9/19/22, with a +3025 GTPI. Sired by TTM Zazzle Empower-ET, her dam is Pine-Tree 8418 Flier 688-ET sired by Winstar Big Al Highflier-ET and due to calve 6/23/23. The second dam, Pine-Tree 7593 Purs 8418-ET, is classified Good Plus 84 and has a record at 2-01 330 31370 5/0 1555 3.9 1221
She has 37 offspring over +1100 NM$ and 29 offspring over +3000 GTPI. She was consigned by Pine-Tree Dairy, Marshallville, Ohio, and purchased by Jason & Sheri Danhof, Waukon, Iowa.

Selling for $13,500 was Lot 1, Misty-Moor Zappy Helga-ET consigned by Misty-Moor Holsteins, Fleetwood, Pennsylvania and purchased by Dr. Barry England, Williamsburg, Pennsylvania. A Fall Calf born 10/01/22 with a +3060 GTPI, she is sired by Peak Zappy-ET. Her dam is AOT Crane Harper-ET sired by Co-op Aardema Drvr Crane-ET. She has eleven (11) Very Good and Excellent dams in her pedigree including Snow-N-Denises Dellia EX 95 2E.

Auctioneer was Randall Kiko, Salem, Ohio. Daniel Brandt, Annville, Pennsylvania, managed the sale and read the pedigrees. Chad Griffith, Bethel, Ohio was in charge of the bids on Cowbuyer. The sale was hosted by the Ohio Holstein Association, Wooster, Ohio.

Ohio Holstein breeders from around the state gathered in St. Clairsville, Ohio for the yearly convention and 2023 annual meeting, graciously hosted by District 3. A fully detailed description of the weekend’s events will be in the March/April Ohio Holstein News, but enjoy some of the pictures from the event here!

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LEWIS JONES – April 5, 1943 – February 26, 2023

Lewis Russell Jones, 79, of Westerville, went Home to be with the Lord early Sunday morning, February 26, 2023, following an extended illness.

He was born April 5, 1943 in Greenfield, Ohio, son of the late Reuben Russell and Jenevee (Keels) Jones. On November 11, 1995, he married his beloved wife, Carol Dianna (Harris) Jones, who survives.

Also surviving are his children, Catherine (Michael) Madison, Lewis R. (Renata “Renya” Krempl) Jones, Jr., and Trevor (Jennifer Booz) Jones; grandchildren, David Madison and Jennifer Madison; siblings, Inez Simmons, Eunice (John) Lowe, and Raymond (Diane) Jones; a sister-in-law, Yvonne Jones; as well as numerous nieces, nephews, extended family members, and close friends. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his son, Nathan Jones, and his brother, Marvin Jones.

Lewis was a graduate of The Ohio State University, where he received his Bachelor’s of Science in 1965. He went on to work as the Buyer and Section Chief at Western Electric Company in Columbus, Ohio. He then became the Operations Manager for the Pillsbury Company’s Grain Division for Cincinnati and Minneapolis. Following that position, he worked as the Auditor for the Federal Milk Market Administrator in Cleveland and Columbus. In 1996, he was hired by the Ohio Department of Agriculture (O.D.A.) to work as the Chief of the Division of Weights and Measures. He was then promoted to the Chief of the Division of Dairy in 1999 and held this position until June 2010, when he was promoted as the Deputy Director of O.D.A. He retired in January 2011 but agreed to a short-term contract at the Executive Secretary of the American Guernsey Association.

Lewis and his wife Carol were active members of the Trinity Baptist Church in Columbus. He received numerous awards associated with his work including being named as a distinguished alumnus of The Ohio State University Alpha Zeta Fraternity in 2005. He was the recipient of the OSU Dairy Science Hall of Service Award in 2011, and served as President and Vice President of the National Association of Dairy Regulatory Officials. He was a delegate and member of the Executive Board of the National Conference on Interstate Milk Shipments, and a member of the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation, a member of the Ohio Agricultural Council, and the National Dairy Shrine. In 2019, he was inducted into the Ohio Agriculture Hall of Fame.

A funeral service will be held at 1:00pm on Friday, March 3, 2023 at the Old Zion Baptist Church, 536 Mill Street, Chillicothe, with Pastor Victor M. Davis officiating, and Rev. Gerard Green, Eulogist. Burial will follow in Forest Cemetery, Circleville. Friends may join the family for visitation on Thursday, March 2, 2023 from 5:00pm-8:00pm at the Haller Funeral Home and one hour prior to the service Friday at the church.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to the Trinity Baptist Church Building Fund, 461 St. Clair Ave., Columbus, OH 43203.

There are scholarship opportunities for Ohio Holstein Juniors and the deadline has been extended!!! Please take advantage of the generosity of this scholarship money and apply for some financial assistance toward your future! Please have applications turned in or postmarked by February 24, 2023.

2023 OHWomen Scholarship Application (OH Women Scholarship Rules)

Welch Communication Scholarship

Ohio Memorial Award

Entries are now LIVE on the Showman App! https://showman.app/shows#/spring-dairy-expo/

Prices are as follows: $25 until March 1st, $30 from March 1 to 25th, $100 week of show

Spring Dairy Expo will be held in Columbus, Ohio March 29-April 1, 2023.

BARBWIRE by Barb Lumley

UP UP AND AWAY MY BEAUTIFUL MY BEAUTIFUL BALLOON

     All this news in the last few days about the shooting down of a Chinese spy balloon and then shooting down more “unidentified flying objects” has certainly stirred up a “hornets’ nest” in our government and our country.  The government has become much “quicker on the trigger” since that Chinese spy balloon was actually spotted by someone!  It has created so many questions and concerns for everyone in our country, but as of yet, no answers!  As I have listened to the reports on all of this over the last few days, my thoughts turned to something strange that happened right here on this farm last summer.
On a warm, pleasant, early summer morning, I took my cup of coffee and went out on my deck to enjoy the sunrise and the beauty of the hills.  As I looked down across my yard to the county road, I saw it.  There, across from my house, settled into the un-mowed grass along the road, was a big balloon.  It was almost the size of one of the smaller made round bales of hay.  It appeared to be a sort of smoky gray on the outside with some splotches of color on it.  I couldn’t tell if there was anything in it.  It was just sitting there!  The question was why!  How did it get there?  I had no choice but to go about my chores, however every once in a while I would check on it and it would still be there!  Now, in view of what has recently happened, I am wondering why and where did it come from?!  Was there equipment inside it that was recording something or looking for something?
Could it have been a spy balloon?  Was it seeking information about registered Holsteins   and the Ohio Holstein Association?  It was sitting right across from the location of my computer room, where I have stacks of Holstein magazines, Holstein books, a wall covered with show awards, pictures, as well as some other important information.  Could they have been checking out my Christmas cactus that is over 100 years old and sits by the sliding glass door?  There is no doubt in my mind that the Chinese want to know about everything we grow and raise!
Could there be some type of “bug” that was collecting information from my computer and phone?  I am known to be someone who tends to speak out and express my opinions.  At the time I was corresponding with a friend, who was spending some time in jail because he expressed his opinion.  Maybe someone was concerned that we were going to start a protest march about free speech when he got out!  Could they have been checking my columns to see what I write about?  If so, that would certainly confuse them!  You never know what I am going to write about!!  Sometimes I don’t know until shortly before the column needs to be sent out!  Could it have been a spy balloon?  We will never know.  It was gone the next morning.
A few weeks later I climbed on my “mean green machine” and began mowing the yard.  As I made my first pass in the backyard next to the pasture I suddenly saw something unusual ahead of me.  It was three large balls, each a little bigger than a grapefruit but smaller than a seedless watermelon, sitting there in the yard.  They were dark grey in color.  I had no idea what they were!  I didn’t know whether to just run my mower over them or drive around them!  Was it something that might explode?  I decided to just leave them alone for a few days.  They just laid there and nothing changed!  Finally, after a few days the grass had to be mowed again.  When I came to them, I got brave.  I aimed the “mean green machine” right at them!  When the mower hit them there was this cloud of gray dust that flew everywhere!  What were they?  I have no idea!  Neither the “mean green machine” nor I seemed to suffer any after affects!
All this news about balloons and flying objects has made us question everything!  We have all seen the Goodyear Blimp fly over at some time.  Was it really the Goodyear Blimp or a “fake” Goodyear Blimp sent over by a foreign country?  When all those beautiful hot air balloons fly into Stark County for the Football Hall of Fame celebration each year, are they just enjoying the festival and the celebration or are they taking pictures and gathering information about the area, the industries, and seeking information about numerous other things there?  And what about that ordinary red balloon that you find in your field that asks you to send information back to the children in a school at a certain address?  Sounds so simple and innocent doesn’t it?  Even that could be a way of a foreign country seeking information about how far something might travel in the sky over our country!
When the singing group, Fifth Dimension, won a Grammy in 1967, the Record of the Year Award and several other awards in 1968 for singing, “Up, up and away my beautiful, my beautiful balloon”, a song that symbolized happiness and lightness of sorrow, no one ever dreamed that the day might come when it could become the theme song for a foreign country and their spying balloons!

District 3 Holstein breeders are looking forward to hosting Ohio breeders for the convention this year!

Meal reservations need to be turned in BEFORE February 20 for an accurate count to the hotel staff for a great meal along with fellowship and learning!

Baskets for the “fun auction” are also being requested. This is always great fun and provides funding to the Ohio Holstein Women for the scholarships and their improvements to the Association.

2023 OHA Annual Meeting