Swathing complete for Farming for Health

The Health Foundation’s Farming for Health project is charging towards its goal of raising a million dollars for a new hospital in Yorkton. This year’s crop is now swathed, and waiting for the combine to come in the next weeks. The crop for 2017 is Nexera Canola, and was seeded on May 24. 

“It’s looking pretty decent. Given the year that we’ve had and the heat, we’re looking for an above average crop year,” said Larry Hilworth, volunteer on the project.

The project has been going for five years, with two more years to go. The project has already raised $760,000, and Hilworth and another volunteer, Al Mitchell with AgraTactics Agronomy, have a bet on whether or not they’re going to meet the goal this year.

The project has brought together the ag community from Yorkton and surrounding area, and Hilworth says that the level of co-operation is what makes the project work. Every time they need something, there’s someone available to supply it, and everyone is enthusiastic about the cause and what they’re doing to raise money for it.

“All the ag dealerships, the ag businesses, crop supply companies, fertilizers, trucking, Co-op for fuel,  different guys for insurance... It’s amazing once you get everyone together,” said Hilworth.

The land is also provided by the City of Yorkton for the seven years of the project.

The swathing is a good example of how people are coming together in support of the project, donating their time to get everything finished.

“It’s all volunteer help. This morning, Perry Berezowski from Rocky Mountain Equipment was out and he started swathing this morning at 4:00, we were planning on starting at 9:00 or 10:00 but he got here out here early and he knocked down a good portion of the field already. Pattison Agriculture are coming out with another swather and they will finish the rest of the field.”

The reason why the volunteers are so eager and companies are so willing to get involved is the cause the project is raising money to support, Hilworth says. The plans for a new hospital in Yorkton are getting people from throughout the region enthusiastic, and they hope that if they can raise over a million a new hospital will be that much closer.