Preserving, strengthening farm life close to Dolan's heart

ALLENTON -- As archbishop of Milwaukee, Timothy M. Dolan said he looks forward to doing anything possible to promote and strengthen rural parishes.

The church must be in communion with the victims, "sensitive to the needs of the cities, sensitive to the needs of the suburbs, but never at the expense of the church in the countryside," said Dolan to about 170 people gathered Dec. 6 for the annual Rural Life Day at Resurrection Parish in Allenton.

The crowd was the largest the event has drawn in 15 years, according to Marjorie Morgan, co-director of the archdiocesan Rural Life Office, which sponsors the annual gathering.

Following Mass and a luncheon, which featured contributions from several farms in the archdiocese, Dolan gave the audience his "10-minute" presentation on the life of the founder of the National Catholic Rural Life Conference, Fr. Edwin O'Hara. The priest's life and work among rural families was the subject of Dolan's doctoral dissertation at The Catholic University of America in Washington D.C., published in 1985.

O'Hara saw something sacramental about country life, said Dolan. "When he was asked, he'd often say to groups like this, 'You know what crop farms raise best? The crop farms raise best are children. Children are the best result of our farm life,'" he said.

Dolan said O'Hara believed that city life was often a detrimental force for families. City life pulls you down, he said. Many children are looked upon as a deterrent. That's not true in the country side where children help in the production of the farm.

O'Hara recognized that the future of agrarian life was in danger, noted Dolan. Furthermore, he believed that if the church didn't make inroads in the lives of farm families, the church itself would wither and die for lack of new members.

To address these problems, O'Hara proposed educational efforts, such as vacation Bible school that included education of farm families and youth in the faith.

O'Hara made concern for farmers and the county churches the heart of his apostolate, said Dolan, noting it is a concern close to his heart as well.

During a question and answer period, Dolan admitted that O'Hara had a somewhat romantic view of farm life, "but he wasn't blind to its defects.... Life on the farm is a natural ally of unrighteous, virtuous living. People on the farms are often healthy in mind, soul and body." O'Hara also promoted modernization of farms and sound fiscal planning, noted Dolan.

Dolan's remarks were met with a standing ovation. Prior to his presentation, Dolan, cradling in his arms 5-week-old Adam Wolf, son of a farmer in attendance, recognized several farm families for 100 and 150 years of farming. As he read -- and sometimes stumbled over -- the primarily German names, Dolan bemoaned the fact that there weren't any "O'Malley farm families. These are tough names."

When congratulating the McFarlandale Dairy Family Farm of Watertown, however he was visibly pleased. "Now, that's much better," he joked.

Hollie Schmitt, 32, a mother of six whose family has been farming over 100 years, lives on a farm in Rubicon that raises steers and crops.

"It's great to see somebody so (enthusiastic) about rural life and its importance to society. I'm glad that people still feel that way," said Schmitt who attended the event with two of her six children, Sheridan, 2, and Jordyn, 3 months.

"Farm life is good for children and you'll find values are still strong in the country," said Schmitt, a member of St. John Parish, Rubicon. "I'm glad that he feels that way."

Paul and Sue Wolf, the parents of Adam, were recognized for 152 years of farming. Their farm, Sunset Family Farm in Allenton, is a true family farm with seven brothers and their families operating the 750-head dairy farm.

"It's good to see (Dolan's) awareness of problems in rural areas," said Paul Wolf, 36, a member of Resurrection Parish, Allenton. "There are no simple answers," he added noting that large farms face similar problems to the smaller family farms. O'Hara's ideas about the church's role in the lives of farmers, particularly in education, were novel to Wolf, but he agreed with O'Hara's emphasis on searching for innovative ways to solve problems.

His family's approach where seven families contribute to maintain a large dairy farm is one such approach.

"One of the benefits is we get families working together and we can become very active in the local community," he said, noting that several family members are on the local volunteer fire department.