Pictured from the left: Farm Service Agency staff Tony Schmillen, Ann Curry, Chelsie Peddicord, Tammy Edward (back), Emily Tomlin, Opperman, FB Manager Jim Drew and treasurer Blair Hoerbert.

Farm Bureau expresses appreciation for federal employees working without pay

[January 25, 2019]    On Friday, representatives from the Logan County Farm Bureau delivered pizzas and homemade cookies (made by Meg Opperman) to the Logan County Farm Service Agency offices in Lincoln. It was the second day the group had made such a delivery and according to FB President David Opperman, the deliveries may continue on for at least the next few weeks.

The Farm Service Agency in Lincoln is a branch of the United States Department of Agriculture, which have been impacted by the partial government shutdown. The offices had been closed but re-opened on Thursday, January 24th. They will maintain regular office hours for the next two weeks then go down to a three-day-a-week schedule.

Opperman said that the Farm Bureau wanted to express some appreciation to the staff because what the FSA does is very important to local farmers. He noted that local farmers are expected to file their Market Facilitation Program at the FSA office. The deadline for filing had originally been January 15th, but the offices were closed. The USDA extended the deadline to February 15th and re-opened their offices to make sure that farmers had the opportunity to meet that second deadline.

FB Treasurer Blair Hoerbert was also on hand. He noted that the local FSA serves Logan County farmers and the majority of those farmers are also Farm Bureau members, so it seemed only fitting that Farm Bureau should show the staff in Lincoln their appreciation.

Jim Drew, manager of the Logan County Farm Bureau office said that the plan is to continue delivering meals at noontime to the staff.

The group is also choosing to spread the love around town by ordering food from the various downtown eateries. He noted that the meals delivered Thursday were from Flossie and Delzena’s. On Friday the pizza came from Sorrento’s and next week the group will select another restaurant each day.

It is unknown how long the partial government shutdown will last, but the Farm Bureau group said they would continue to support their local FSA staff for as long as it takes.

[Nila Smith]

Post Script: On Friday afternoon President Donald Trump announced that there will be a temporary stay on the government shutdown. The shutdown will cease for the next three weeks, until February 15th. The shutdown may resume after the 15th.