January 11, 2006
As long as I can remember, the Farm Bureau has been an institution in my life. As a kid, I remember buying a bunch of leather strips and making a bullwhip. I'd buy bandannas for do-rags as a teenager and learned to charge gas there when I got a car. It has forever been the location where we bought gas, hardware, feed, bedding plants, fencing, etc. and had minor services accomplished like mounting tires, sharpening chain saw blades, fixing the weed eater, and even one time had them replace the well pump.

Today I opened a letter that included this information:

"Dear Patron,
Effective January 10, 2006, we will permanently close our store located on New Hope Road. All current operations of this store will be merged into other existing Augusta Cooperative locations. We regret any inconvenience that this may cause our patrons, but we believe this action is necessary to strengthen existing operations and ensure the long term viability of your Co-op."

This letter states that the store will be merged. That means that this one stop shopping location accessed by a 1.5 mile trip is gone. There are other stores, but now the closest one is 10 miles away, and therefore not an option for accomplishing needs of goods and services I've had for 48 years. I know there have been days while working on projects that I've made 5 trips back and forth to the Bureau. I trust the "strengthen[ing of] existing operations" doesn't reflect a negative impact that recently opened chain box hardware stores are having on the beloved Farm Bureau. There is no question that stuff costs more at the FB than at Lowes, but you can't charge at Lowes and Calvin the tattooed guy won't be around to sharpen chains or give advice on the weed-eater. At Home Depot you won't see Liz at the desk, who knows my number by memory and always asks about the boys. That guy with the do-rag that rides the bike won't be around to hump the water softener salt into the pickup and the one armed woman won't chatter away up in hardware. Layne won't yap about the neighbors while you charge gas, and lazy eye guy won't be there to wash the gas out of the eyes of the 8 year old son who screwed around and pulled the nozzle out of the car against mom's directions. She'll even have to learn that gas and plants and boots for the kids aren't free, as she's always just given a number in the past. (Of course, I get the bill later that month.) Its closing will even affect my friends and family as I'll have to find another place to do my Christmas shopping!

I"ll miss the local Farm Bureau. It has been an institution of my life and my town. I have an expression that everyone around me is able to repeat: "If it isn't at the Farm Bureau, you don't need it!" To Liz at the desk and Layne and Calvin and lazy eye guy at the station, to do-rag bike guy at the feed mill and to one armed woman up in hardware- I'll miss you all and wish you all the best. I'll never forget what you and the FB have been for me, having had a major impact on my cars, my house, my tools, machines, yard, my kids, my family, and my life. I don't know about Lowes and Home Depot, but I know there is a Farm Bureau in heaven!