Sometimes the greatest gifts come during unexpected times, and in unexpected ways.
The anxious time when a family’s livelihood is at stake can be tempered by people, spanning many miles, lending help during those unexpected times.
And, sometimes, those moments involve chickens.
This was the case with Chad and Tammy Crowell, who farm southwest of Windom, and, up until a couple of weeks ago, raised chickens for Pure Prairie Poultry out of Fairfax and Charles City, Iowa.
The Crowell family has raised chickens for 35 years. Chad’s father raised them for Campbell’s, and later for other companies. Twenty years ago, Chad took over the farm. Most recently they raised chickens for Pure Prairie.
The first hint of problems came in April, when payment checks were delayed, then stopped altogether. Despite this, the company seemed to be working things out, sending feed, picking up market-ready chickens, and sending more chicks to raise.
That changed around Oct. 1, when the Crowells were having a difficult time getting a pickup scheduled.
For more on this story, please see the Oct. 16 edition of the Citizen.
