Feature Member Spotlight
Support systems ARE
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WITHIN AGRICULTURE Story and photos by Andrea Haines
Heavy clouds of steam swirl from atop of a warm coffee cup, a man stands in a barn gazing out into the lot where his animals are happily munching on hay; he sips from the cup adorned with words from Proverbs 17:17, “A friend loves at all times”. This is a scene familiar to many producers — whether it’s the quiet moments of a morning, long hours atop a tractor seat, or sitting in front of a pile of paperwork. Oftentimes, we as providers revel in the solitude. It can be peaceful and uplifting, that oneon-one time with animals or tending the earth, however, stressors and demanding times can allow pressure to creep inside, allowing fear and doubt to overtake one’s self. 8 LEADER
VOLUME 26 | ISSUE 1
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t’s important to have another [person],” according to Dr. James “Toby” Behrmann. “We need another, who invests in us.” Dr. Behrmann has a view from both sides of the fence; he has a PhD in Clinical Psychology and is licensed as a clinical psychologist in Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia. He and his wife Suzanne also own and operate Shepherd’s Whey Creamery, a Grade A goats’ milk processing facility in Martinsburg, West Virginia. “I remain in full-time practice, including a part-time position as Chief of Psychology at a State of Maryland medium term residential treatment center for Dual Diagnosis Intellectually Disabled individuals,” he explains. “I work with children, adults, and families in private practice outpatient psychotherapy, with a subspecialty in family law issues such as parenting, custody, and adoption concerns.” Dr. Behrmann’s involvement with farming is in the crop/hay area, growing mixed grass and legume hay, and repairing buildings and machinery. “I can dovetail this somewhat time-flexible dimension of our agriculture life with my private practice hours,” he shares. Suzanne has a master’s degree in physical therapy and retains a license, but for her, there was a complete shift to full-time farmer and business owner after the creamery was built. He says, “She has primary responsibility of the herd management, cheese making, and marketing. “We formally started farming operations in 2006 on our small 2.75 acre property that remained of what had been a horse-plowed 10 acre working farm.” He chuckles, “I would describe our farming endeavor as a 4-H project starting with just two dairy goats and homemade goat cheese of various sorts that got completely out of control. You know, where one small thing leads to another logical, relatively small ‘needed’ next thing, and finally you step back and ask, ‘Whoa, wait a minute, what are we doing?’” The Behrmanns were fortunate enough to live in an area of historically small farms that had many active and retired farmers who took interest in them and their questions. “To make a small farm financially viable, we had to have a value-added product and/or niche market, as we would not be competitive with large-scale agriculture,” he shares. “The farm’s close proximity to a large population
