Each has experienced the ups and downs of farming . . . Darry Slump, Dave Bowen, Gregg Hillyer, Mike McDonald, Scott Hillyer and Steve McGrew. Jim Patrico D riving north out of Shenandoah on Hwy. 59, I steer my car over familiar terrain. Outside the window, the rolling hills of southwest Iowa meet the horizon.
Cattle graze lazily on the short grass, ignoring the noise of the speeding cars and trucks.
Rows of corn and soybeans wind around endless terraces, their roots clinging to the steep slopes. On this sunny fall day, I'm meeting several former classmates who returned home to work the land. Twenty-five years ago, we marched out of a high school gymnasium into a world of opportunity. We were 32 strong, the pride of the Nishna Valley Community School that served this rural area in Mills County. Diplomas in hand, nearly half the young men dreamed of becoming farmers.