Kuethes have decades of history on their farm
By Heather Thorstensen
hthorstensen@agrinews.com
Date Modified: 12/05/2011 3:59 PM
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SUMNER, Iowa— It seems fitting that a couple who married on Thanksgiving Day made their living by raising turkeys.
Raymond and Margaret Kuethe bought their farm in Sumner in 1943. They milked cows and raised crops until their son, Ron, got involved in an effort to get young people into the turkey business.
In 1958, Ron was 18 when he and an agriculture teacher were supplied with 2,500 turkeys and feed with no up-front costs.
Soon after, Ron married and moved away temporarily to Puerto Rico, but his father kept the birds by buying out the teacher's portion.
Raymond continually grew the flock by investing profits into the operation.He built portable shelters with feeders so the turkeys could be raised on range. In the early 1970s, his sons, Mike and Ron, took over.
Today, Mike runs the operation and Ron helps out seasonally. Kuethe Turkey Farms raises 180,000 to 190,000 turkeys each year.Additionally, a joint venture with other owners, Buck Creek Turkey, raises 80,000 birds. Both sell to West Liberty Foods in West Liberty.
Since the early 1980s, all the turkeys have been raised indoors, where they have automatic waterers and feeders. They have three sites: The home place, where Raymond and Margaret still live, and two others.
Framed photos on the Kuethe's wall show aerial shots of how the farm expanded over the years.
Raymond, now 98, still enjoys running the combine when they harvest 500 acres ofcorn, making sure to get the grain to flow as close to the center of the grain wagon as possible.
He remembers a time when he picked corn by hand, then had to hand-shovel it into the corn crib.
Margaret, now 94, would raise food in the garden, cook and bake, embroider and tie quilts. She used feed sack bags to make bed sheets.
For extra money, Raymond took extra jobs such as working for a butcher or at a sales barn. They were poor but they didn't think they were, Margaret said, because everyone was in a similar situation. Entertainment came from simply being with the family and neighbors back then, said Ron.
After their sons took over the turkey business, Raymond and Margaret took time to travel. They've been to 33 countries, he said.
"It was to broaden our minds," said Margaret. "They were good times."
These days, Raymond is the farm's chief lawn mower, cutting the grass at their three farm sites. Margaret does a lot of cooking and bakes a lot of pies. With help, she cans tomatoes and makes pickles. Raymond grows his own potatoes. The two of themplay pinocle with their friends every week.
In their decades of farm life, Raymond remembershelping to dig holes so telephone poles could bring electricity to the farm, and digging for a tiling system. He got involved with the community, helping at Margaret's Catholic church while he attended services at a Lutheran church, and serving on multiple boards, including the board at American Savings Bank in Tripoli, on which he still serves.
Margaret considers herself blessed with her family. Last year, for her and Raymond's 75th wedding anniversary, at least 200 family members and friends came to an open house. This year, for their 76th, they will have a more low-key celebration with family.