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America's Heartland is made possible by...
Farm Credit - financing agriculture and rural America
since 1916.
Farm Credit is cooperatively owned by
America's farmers and ranchers.
Learn more at farmcredit.com.
Croplife America... Representing the companies
whose modern farming innovations
help America's farmers provide nutritious food
for communities around the globe.
Hi I'm Rob Stewart.
We share some very special sights and sounds with you on
America's Heartland this time.
We'll take you from coast to coast to meet
some farm and ranch families with special talents
when it comes to being creative in the country.
Ready for some mountain music?
This Tennessee craftsman builds instruments that
harken back to America's past.
A Wisconsin dairy farmer finds his niche as a
primitive American woodcarver.
A Kansas farm family creates a country attraction that
teaches city folks a little about agriculture and
a lot about having fun.
And sure...it's a sheep ranch,
but this Wyoming woman
uses her wool
for one-of-a-kind pieces of art.
It's the creative side of country life...
just ahead on America's Heartland.
You can see it in the eyes
Of every woman and man
In America's Heartland
Living close to the land
There's a love for the country
And a pride in the brand
In America's Heartland
Living close,
Close to the land
♪♪
Do you consider yourself a creative person?
Spend any time on a farm or ranch and you'll discover
folks who are multi-talented with skills that run the
gamut from mechanic to irrigation expert.
And many of those same folks have creative talents as well -
painting, music, maybe they're even the
kings or queens of swing dancing.
All across the heartland you'll find unique skills
and unique creations.
Whether it's for a job or just a hobby...
hammering out the best horseshoe means you have
a talent that few others can claim.
Baking?
Using heartland wheat, bakers turn out exceptional
breads and pastries with recipes and techniques that
may go back generations.
And let's not forget collecting as a hobby.
Like the folks in Cawker City, Kansas who continue to
collect twine for...what they claim is...
the world's largest ball of twine.
So...where to start?
Let's take you to Wyoming where we found a woman who
uses wool in a very special way.
♪♪
It is a Wyoming legend that these hot spring hills
of Thermopolis are filled with
the spirits of days gone by.
And so goes - the legend of Sheep Queen Lucy Moore, who
bravely grazed her sheep in the graceful peaks and
valleys of Copper Mountain in the late 1800's.
(sheep bleating)
More than a century later, sheep are still running this
land at Lucy's sheep camp -
named after the sheep queen herself.
But there's a new queen of the sheep these days
Billie Jo Norsworthy herding with her family
in the shadows of Copper Mountain.
But this is a sheep shearing business
for all things wool.
For Billie Jo - it all began
with a needle and a dream...and 4 sheep!
>>I think the way I was raised was to be a big thinker,
and so to have only
limited myself to four,
that's just not really my personality.
4 - quickly grew -
into 150 sheep!
Billie Jo raises them for their soft, wool coats
turns the fleece into yarn and sells it.
>>So all of this wool,
everything that you're using today...
Each week, Billie Jo hosts crafting clubs to celebrate
the wonders of wool - at her specialty shop - right in
the middle of her fields filled with sheep.
>>...it's kind of like your signature as a fiber artist.
Billie Jo's creative focus is part of her passion.
Here she celebrates
the fabric of this country.
So I thought, what better way to incorporate you know,
kids and people that live in the city, to agriculture -
than using wool.
It's something that's
a little more familiar to everybody.
And something that they can take home with them.
Whether they live in the city or the country.
>>You don't just farm anymore.
You don't just ranch.
A lot of times you have to have another income and I
didn't want to work in town.
♪♪
In her backyard, under the old cotton wood trees filled
with chirping birds ...
(birds chirping)
... pull by pull ... peddle by peddle ...
Billie Jo spins wool into yarn
spinning in the same yard,
where her father once played as a child.
>>You talk about the need for
people to be able to diversify.
>>Diversification is extremely
important in agriculture.
It seems like if you kind
of get entrenched in what
Grandpa used to do.
Times change,
expenses change,
demands change,
so you better be thinking out of the box.
>>This is your wall of wool back here and I can't help but
see some names: Aretha?
What's up with that?
>>Aretha Franklin?
I was a music major in college
so we named them after musicians.
>>And it's that personal touch, too.
People know where they're getting their wool from,
literally from which animal.
>>And sometimes people email me and say,
"Oh, I got Aretha's fleece last year,
can I have it again this year?"
The soft fleece comes from a coated sheep.
Each bag of wool is a years worth of growth
from a single animal.
But it's a lifetime of dreams for Billie Jo and
her dad here, in the shadow of Copper Mountain.
>>I don't know how you could look at this and know that
you own it for now, and not feel blessed.
I mean, it's green and God gives you the wildflowers
and it's just nature and we get to be immersed in it.
♪♪
Wool is used for many more things
than sweaters.
Wool fabric is used in covering
the rubber core of tennis balls.
And a regulation baseball
is wound with more than a
hundred yards of wool yarn
before being covered by cowhide.
If you're like most of us, a regular job may leave you
little time for a hobby or an outside interest.
But those with a drive to express themselves always
seem to find the time
to answer that creative spirit.
You know, running a dairy farm demands lots of ...
no pun intended...
"hands on" work.
But Jason Shoultz traveled to Wisconsin where
one dairy farmer also found time to
carve out his own creative niche.
>>I just start hacking away.
♪♪
>>Because after you do it enough
you know where the cuts gotta go.
In just a few weeks,
*** Haezart will turn
this block of wood into a horse.
And soon after he'll put it
together with this water wagon
and driver, add another horse...
...and create an old-fashioned fireman's water wagon.
When it's done it won't end up
in a museum or a craft store.
>>They're kind of hidden back here
in a little shed, aren't they?
>>Yeah. Yeah, that's right.
This carving will find a place in this increasingly crowded
shed on his Wisconsin farm.
♪♪
>>That could have been the first one I made.
>>Right here.
>>Yeah. I had a set of chisels
I bought at Kmart for about three bucks.
It took a while.
>>Looks pretty good for a first attempt.
>>Not bad at all. That's what got me doing the second one.
And after that first foray
into carving in the mid-1980s,
he was hooked.
>>What's this here? Card game?
>>Looks that way.
>> What's this here on his sleeve?
I didn't even see this.
>>Looks like, kind of a shifty one,
in my opinion.
After a lifetime working as a dairy farmer,
he's spent his retirement
in a corner of a barn
turned into a woodworking shop.
>>Look at this guys eyes,
and the title of this one is...
>>Catching hell.
>>He's in trouble for something.
>>Yup.
While he has carved dozens of figurines, he doesn't
carve the likenesses of actual people.
I leave that to more talented people than myself.
Besides figurines, he also carves farm implements.
♪♪
Some by memory...others, well he's much more familiar with.
Like this 1947 Farmall M tractor.
I still got that same M from when I was 14 years old,
in the garage there.
I'm still using that.
So boy that tells you something
about quality in those days, huh?
***'s carvings of days gone by are in many ways a trip
through his childhood.
A time when modern conveniences didn't exist....
like indoor plumbing.
>>That's the first thing that you included in your prayers
at night when you went to bed.
"Don't let me have to go to the outhouse."
>>Save it until morning.
>>Oh God, yes.
But with life, there is also pain.
His father died when *** was only a month old.
He was raised on the same farm
where he lives today by his grandmother.
I took over the farm when I was 21.
My wife and I got married 1954
and that's when I took over the farm.
And *** points to another painful time in his life as
a turning point...that led him to find a past-time.
In 1984 when his son Richard Jr. died suddenly at age 28.
After he died, they did an autopsy.
They found out he had a hole in his heart
in a spot where they couldn't see it.
He was my friend, you know.
And when he'd come out here, the other kids would
go in the house to see mom.
But he would come out there and look for dad.
So we had a real close relationship and it was hard.
Carving turned out to be cathartic.
>>It gets your mind off of it.
It gives you something else to do.
Something to look forward to every day
The tears come, you know, for no reason at all.
But he still had a farm to run, and a herd of dairy cows
to be milked, twice a day.
In 1991, health issues forced him
to hang up his milking hat.
*** is proud of his carvings.
He doesn't sell them -
but he hopes someday loan them to a museum
for others to enjoy as well.
♪♪
And about his rule of not carving actual people?
Well, he's broken it only once.
A few feet from his workbench
a familiar face watches over him.
His late son.
I carved that. . that's him when he was 14 years old.
He was serving mass over at the church over here.
♪♪
Since Wisconsin calls itself "America's Dairyland"
it's only fitting that the dairy cow is the state's
official "domesticated" animal.
And unlike many other states, Wisconsin has an
official state beverage.
Care to guess?
Yep...it's milk.
♪♪
Rural residents living on the plains or
wide open spaces of the American West in the 1800's
had to be creative
to make their hardscrabble lives
a bit more enjoyable.
That often meant making their own music.
A similar interest prompted rural folks in the
mountain communities of the eastern U.S.
to create musical instruments
from the wood of the trees
that surrounded their homes.
So are you ready for a few tunes?
Well, our Sarah Gardener says those traditions are
very much alive in one Tennessee community.
♪♪
In the early days of the American republic,
the rolling landscape surrounding
the Great Smoky Mountains
was home to some of America's first farmers and ranchers.
(river)
It was also home to a uniquely Appalachian sound
created by a uniquely American musical instrument.
♪♪
An instrument called...
a Dulcimer.
♪♪
Connie Clemmer and her husband, Mike are well known
to dulcimers musicians from all around the world.
Working in his small shop
in this rural Tennessee community,
Mike uses native woods from the forests nearby
to create one of a kind musical instruments.
>>The local woods that I use are the walnut, sassaphras,
butternut, cherry, a lot of woods like that.
♪♪
Translated from its Latin origins,
the word "dulcimer" means "a sweet song"...
something that early Appalachian settlers were
trying to replicate from the stringed instruments enjoyed
by their European ancestors.
It was pretty much invented here.
It was made here out of necessity to have an instrument.
Very few things came over the mountain that didn't get broke,
so they basically had to use
what they had here to build something.
(building instruments)
Mike first began building dulcimers in 1976.
It was a hobby then.
A hobby that became his life's work as he transitioned
from his regular 9 to 5 sales job.
We were empty nesters.
And, Mike's job of about nine years
was not really going too well.
It was kind of going south and we knew it.
So, we were just laying in bed one night and I said,
"Honey, if you had a blank check, what would you do?"
And he said, "I'd go back up to Townsend and build dulcimers."
This is the steam bent.
Walnut.
And then when I set it in against the curves,
after I have the ends put on,
then it just flows right in there.
Mike constructs up to eight dulcimers at a time.
Each is a project that takes weeks -
turning a musical instrument
into a singular work of art.
>>Well the back is made out of black walnut.
And that is pretty, but actually it has
a lot to do with the sound.
Where you have a knot is going to be hard.
And when it's hard like that it has a different sound
than like a piece here that would be soft.
Just like those early American dulcimer makers,
Mike has taken the basic form and crafted
an unusual variation.
And this is something I invented
I guess now about 11 years ago.
It actually has an opening in the back,
and this is a practice pad, drum pad.
And then I put that with the dulcimer frame board.
♪♪
(playing scales)
Connie's in charge of handling
orders on the dulcimers.
While some of the instruments will
cost hundreds of dollars,
there's often a backlog
on having enough stock to meet demand.
>>We've had our struggles, because any time you have a
business that takes off that fast and it grows
as fast as it did, you know, you have growing pains.
And we've had them.
♪♪
But, it's also the way that Mike and Connie market their
dulcimers that helps keep sales humming...
like their free concerts.
♪♪
>>And now every Saturday night, during the season,
from the second weekend of May through October,
every Saturday night at 7, we have our Pickin' on the Porch.
And it's just fun.
It's all free.
And everybody brings their lawn chair.
It's in our backyard next to the river and we just play.
This "country connection" involves both novice and
experienced musicians.
Everybody can get involved.
There'll be some sing-alongs.
Mainly it's people that
come in to do the classes on
Saturday will perform.
It's a really good Saturday evening.
>>Had you ever played with anybody who played a
dulcimer before?
Never. Never.
I was not familiar with
the instrument at all.
but Mike plays chords and it just opened up a whole
different thing for me.
He's an amazing player.
♪♪
Mike says dulcimers tend to sell themselves, especially
when folks learn how easy it is to play the instrument.
>>People stop by.
They've heard of a dulcimer, they've heard the name.
Somebody has said something about it,
but they just weren't sure.
And they'll come in and they'll start playing -
we'll get them playing.
And they'll leave with one.
If you've got a 10-minute attention span,
you can learn how to play the dulcimer.
It's just basically a series of numbers.
And I've had kids that were six, seven, and eight sit
down and learn how to play.
And I've had folks that were in their 80s and 90s that
would sit down, always wanted to play something,
but never been able to, and sit down and play a song or
two in about 10-minutes.
>>So we're going to play a song.
I'm going to play "Oh Susannah."
>>Okay.
>>Now I'm going to say a number and when I say a number,
you put your finger where the number would be and then
hit all the strings one time
for each number that I tell you.
>>Okay.
>>Okay.
So zero.
One.
Two.
Four.
Four.
Five.
Four.
Two.
Zero.
>>That was easy.
That was amazing.
>>And that's what you do.
They have done everything.
You see how you have wide places and short places?
>>Uh Huh.
Well, what that is if you know about music is
whole step, whole step, half step,
whole step, whole step, whole step,
half step... which is
♪♪
There's your do-re-mi.
So 90% of all the songs that you know is that.
And that's all you have to do.
Although it took years for Mike to find his "life's work,"
he and Connie say they now have a career
that's "music to their ears" and a career that carries on
a heartland tradition.
>>Not just the dulcimer, but the
old traditional mountain music period.
>>And it's just been a real blessing how God's
taken care of all this stuff.
Just kept us and kept blessing us.
♪♪
There's some good eatin' in Tennessee.
Folks head to the Volunteer State for the
National Cornbread Festival
each spring
in South Pittsburgh Tennessee.
And if you're traveling to Memphis, pick up some ribs
after you stop by Elvis' home at Graceland.
The city is famous for its wet ribs, dry rub and
pulled pork sandwiches.
Being creative can involve making music or developing
your artistic talents.
But it can also mean encouraging "commerce" as
you look to enhance opportunities
in your rural community.
That's happening in many parts of the heartland.
Agritainment attracts visitors
who may want to know more about farms or ranches.
Farm Stays are one way, but our John Lobertini found a
Kansas family farm with a different approach to
creative commerce in the country.
Welcome to Gardner, Kansas where agriculture and entertainment
make up an unusual partnership.
♪♪
This 62-acre piece of Kansas farmland is part pumpkin patch,
part playground.
Kirk and Julie Berggren admittedly have a soft spot
for the orange orb.
But folks here in the heartland
were initally confused.
>>What kind of nut is this?
Why would anyone
pay to come to a farm?
That's where you work.
And then afterwards they thought
"You know, that's not such a bad idea."
For years the Berggren's were a military family;
following Papa Kirk all over the country.
Eight Air Force jobs in eleven years.
>>Hey, how are you guys doing?
>>Good!
When they got homesick,
they wanted to get back to the land.
And a pumpkin patch
was where they wanted to be.
You see Julie is from Iowa.
Kirk: a native of Nebraska.
For me, it meant that we were home.
So, it didn't matter what
state we lived in, in what city,
when we would go out to a pumpkin patch,
it was like a trip home for us.
Surely there were already pumpkin patches in Kansas.
But not one quite like this.
KC Pumpkins features 40 attractions.
Trains, pedal cars, paintball guns, jumping pillows
and petting zoos.
>>I think they're hungry, aren't they?
Katie Young has made 15 trips here over the years
with her pre-school classes.
The fun makes teaching a little bit easier.
>>We usually do the
life cycle of the pumpkins.
We show them the pumpkin patch
where they get to go pick out a pumpkin.
And we talk about how it starts from the seed and
goes to the flower.
You know, places like this are becoming more and more popular
all over the country.
A rollercoaster ride could take ninety seconds,
but a romp here in a hay maze -
could last a half an hour.
It's a cheaper, maybe even, more fulfilling day out for
families looking for a simpler way of life
in a tough economy.
Farmers have long diversified to stay profitable.
But agri-entertainment
is something new.
And entertainment is the key word here.
>>Wheeeee!
You won't find this zip line at an amusement park
or anything like...
ready for this.....
a gourd gun.
Alright, aim and fire.
Very good.
♪♪
But the pumpkin launcher.....
>>Hey guys, you want to shoot the cannon?
>>Yeah!
.....is the "Wow" factor that brings in the big crowds.
>>Whenever you're ready just push that, pull it up.
Flick it.
(whoosh)
>>Oh man!
Kirk says the family plan seems to be paying off.
I don't know what our numbers are, but we've had to
expand the parking lot several times,
which is a good problem to have.
(gourd gun shoots)
Nice Shot!
What kind would you like?
We've got green apple and lemon lime.
After eight years of hard labor in this family business,
19-year old Taylor swore she'd never return once she
left for college.
But farming was in her blood.
I ended up coming back and I brought friends too!
Alright, there you go.
She came home almost every week in October,
because it is a part of us.
Her brothers pull their weight too,
"Two, one.."
Jacob and Eli clear the fields and work the attractions.
(tractor running)
>>And when we have a work day, we all come out and work.
>>Two rabbits!
>>Two rabbits. One, Two.
This is a hands-on day for everyone here:
giving kids and their parents a connection to the heartland.
My kids like to do what other kids like to do -
they play on the computer, they watch TV.
But this is one thing
they're willing to give that up for.
And the Berggren's echo that connection to the land:
family values and family entertainment.
>>When people don't have money at certain times,
like the depression, they look for comfort foods.
Meaning, old time fun,
simple stuff,
going to dances.
We want people to come and have a great time
and feel like they get a good value for their money.
It's very important to us.
That's going to do it this time.
Thanks for travelling the country with us
on America's Heartland.
We know that we pass along a lot of information to you in
every program and in case you missed something or
you just want to check out videos from this or other shows,
we make it easy.
Just log on to our website at americasheartland.org.
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You can find us there.
We'll see you next time,
right here on America's Heartland.
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♪♪
You can see it in the eyes
Of every woman and man
In America's Heartland
Living close to the land
There's a love for the country
And a pride in the brand
In America's Heartland
Living close
Close to the land.
"America's Heartland is made possible by..."
Farm Credit - financing agriculture and rural America
since 1916.
Farm Credit is cooperatively owned by
America's farmers and ranchers.
Learn more at farmcredit.com.
Croplife America... Representing the companies
whose modern farming innovations
help America's farmers provide nutritious food
for communities around the globe.