Living in the Bible belt, I know firsthand that religion can be stifling, oppressive, contradictory and prejudicial. I know it can ruin people’s lives, separate families, and hurt people in the community, the country, and even the planet.
But I also know that it can sometimes save people’s lives, and that many of the kindest people I know are religious people. I know plenty of Midwesterners who may not be able to point out much on a map—or even “believe” in evolution!—but they would help you fix a flat or shovel snow much more quickly than many other, more “sophisticated” people might. And doesn’t kindness matter most?
Dave Baldauf, a 43-year-old Mormon, farmer and self-described “country boy” of Sarasota Springs, Utah is a kind fellow. He uses his faith in a loving way—to provide for the needy.
Baldauf, along with one other farmer, raises corn, wheat and alfalfa full-time at Sarasota Crops of western Utah Lake. It’s part of a welfare program that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints runs to help feed people in need. The crops provide feed for the 5,000 cows at the church’s dairy farm in Elberta, and the wheat, along with the dairy products produced, are then distributed by the church to hungry people, at no cost to them.
Other care items besides food are also distributed.
Baldauf says, “It’s a vital aspect for the church. We’re providing for those in need. That’s really what this is all about… We feed the cows so they can feed the needy.”
He works long hours doing what he does, even driving three machines in two fields in a single hour. Baldauf’s new wife, Amy, is even in on his hard work. After meeting at a church event, the couple spent their first date on a tractor.
Since they’ve been married she’s accompanied him often in the 3,000 acres of fields the LDS Church operates, sitting on an upside-down bucket as she watches him do his thing.
Amy says that riding on that John Deere tractor with her guy sealed the deal for her. “That’s when I knew it. This is the guy.”
I don’t know many guys who would do that much work for charity… Do you? Sure, a shift at the soup kitchen here and a highway cleanup there—but day in and day out labor? Dave, thanks for helping to keep so many people fed, especially in harsh times like these.
Printer-friendly version