Reading Time: 4 minutes Rod Andrews knows what it is to be forever connected to a chunk of land and a way of life. There’s a special quality in his voice when he talks about the family farm, on Alberta’s Coal Trail between Delburne and Red Deer. “It was a magic place. I loved to go there,” Andrews says […] Read more
The flying bishop
As he celebrates his 20th year as Country Guide columnist, Rod Andrews remembers that he only ever wanted to be an Anglican priest. And a pilot
Get it built
Starting a biodiesel plant can make going on ‘Dragon’s Den’ look like a walk in the park
Reading Time: 7 minutes Long before the foundations ever got poured, or even dreamed of, Zenneth Faye was already on the road toward Milligan Biofuels Inc., Canada’s first canola-based biodiesel fuel plant, in Foam Lake, Sask. In fact, he traces his role in its origins to the mid-1980s, when he got involved with Saskatchewan Canola Growers Association and he […] Read more
The hidden farm illness
Even in good times, depression takes its toll on the farm too
Reading Time: 5 minutes Only a decade ago, Gerry Friesen was a successful farmer, a commodity board director, and a member of the Manitoba Farm Mediation Board. Outwardly, he was doing just fine. Inwardly, he was battling severe depression. “I fooled a lot of people,” Friesen says. There has long been a stigma around depression on the farm. Now […] Read more
What to do if you, or someone you know, is having thoughts of self-harm
Having people to talk to and a good support network is vital
Reading Time: 3 minutes If someone has thoughts of harming themselves, the most important thing they can do is to seek out support, says Greg Gibson, registered clinical psychologist at Community Health Services for the Prairie Mountain Health Region based in Brandon, Man. This can be extremely difficult, particularly for someone struggling with depressive symptoms, since they may be […] Read more
Time for a radical change
You might call it flower power. Barb and John Cote call it an amazing shift from grain farming
Reading Time: 8 minutes At a time when other farmers lay awake wondering how they can manage to acquire more land, the husband and wife team of John Cote and Barb Stefanyshyn-Cote have downsized dramatically. They’ve gone from farming 5,000 acres to farming 80 acres. And they couldn’t be happier. The Cotes grow and sell flowers, adding up to […] Read more
Make it the right name
Starting a new venture? Need a corporate name? Follow these pointers for a name you’ll be proud of
Reading Time: 4 minutes Naming your farm or your business can be even more difficult than naming your children, where at least you can buy a book or click on a website with all the possibilities. The potential range of business names, by contrast, is virtually as wide as you can imagine. It also doesn’t matter if it turns […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
