Local farmers lend a hand to those in Kan.
CONNOQUENESSING TWP — Some Butler County farmers are helping Kansas ranchers devastated by massive wildfires earlier this month.
Roxanne Graham, who along with her husband, Ryan, runs Graham Haven, a grain farm in Connoquenessing Township, is helping to coordinate the effort, which includes at least 10 farmers who are sending hay, fencing supplies and other resources to Ashland, Kan.
Ashland was the site of wildfires that reportedly destroyed more than 400,000 acres of prairie and farmland, killed thousands of livestock, ruined thousands of miles of fence and destroyed a substantial number of homes. Rebuilding efforts are expected to take years, according to the Kansas Farm Bureau.
Graham said the effort in Butler County began to gain momentum after it became clear that homegrown relief efforts were needed. Earlier this month Kansas eased transportation regulations and other rules to make it easier for groups like Graham's to send supplies. But Graham said it's still clear that the farming community has to continue rallying around those affected by the disaster.
“It's basically farmers helping farmers,” she said. “Because it's going to take the government too long to get involved, if they even do.”
The first shipment includes 17½ tons of hay donated from farmers in Grove City, Evans City and Butler. It will make the trip on a tractor-trailer donated by Dustin Davis of Davis Trucking, a Mercer-based business, and is expected to leave this evening.
The group has also received help from local church groups and residents in the Franklin area, who have raised about $4,500 to cover fuel costs and other expenses. Any unused money from the trip will be donated to the relief cause in Ashland, Graham said.
Graham said the group hopes to send another shipment next weekend — this one including fencing, milk replacer for calves, feed, medications and other resources — and wants to let people know there's still time to get involved. She said the group estimates it will need about $2,500 to fuel three trucks for the trip.
The donation effort is being run through the Tractor Supply Co. in Franklin, and those interested in getting involved can contact JR Byers at the store's main number: 814-676-1535. People also can contact Graham on her Facebook page, or via e-mail at rroofe@gmail.com.
Kansas is one of several states, including Oklahoma, Texas and Colorado, that have been ravaged by wildfires this year. In total more than 1.5 million acres in four states have been lost, according to reports by RFD-TV, a cable news channel that focuses on rural and agricultural issues.
