April 6, 2018 at 1:53 p.m.
PROFILE
Catholic couple's life on Delaware County farm
On a recent cool morning, a blanket of fog hid the Black Angus beef cattle on the Bachler farm in East Meredith, a small town in Delaware County.
Mr. Bachler and his wife, Gretel, 72, sipped coffee at their dining room table, surrounded by family photos. Parishioners of St. Peter's Church in Delhi, they are first-generation Americans; their parents all came to the U.S. from Austria before they were born.
When Mr. Bachler was only 19, he moved from Queens to the 250-acre farm with his late mother. He has been working hard on that hill for the past 55 years.
Making a go of farming "takes a family," Mr. Bachler stated. "To be successful, you need a strong family. You need a strong wife."
Mrs. Bachler said farm life can teach children responsibility and a good work ethic. Their two grown children "bring that self-confidence to whatever else they are doing," she said.
Teamwork and family
"We're a great team," added the proud wife, who married her husband in 1965.
Their daughter, Krista, is now a pharmacist. "Early on, she was just a very organized little girl," said Mrs. Bachler, who used to feed the calves with her daughter when Krista was young.
Paul Todd, their son, has his doctorate in education psychology. "It was a goal that he wanted," Mr. Bachler boasted.
Both of the Bachler children now have families of their own, making Mr. and Mrs. Bachler proud grandparents, as well.
The couple hopes their four grandchildren will be able to spend time on the farm. "It's a wonderful way to grow up," said Mrs. Bachler. "On a family farm, you see birth and death. That is so much a part of life."
Faith helps the couple take each day of farming as it comes, through hard times and bad weather. "The sign of the cross enables you to put your best foot forward," said Mrs. Bachler. "That's what keeps a family together."
"I don't know if it's sinful or not, but I always have to work on Sunday," Mr. Bachler confessed. "We try to make it a day of rest, but it doesn't always work out."
Because of all of the rain this summer, he's had to go right from church to his tractor in order to get the second cut of hay ready to bale.
"We're slaves to the cattle," he said.
Dairy vs. beef
The Bachlers originally had a dairy farm. In 1987, they took advantage of a government dairy buyout program for which they had to contractually promise not to have dairy cows for five years after the deal was made.
Twenty-one of the Bachlers' dairy cows were shipped to a buyer in Venezuela. Others went to the Canary Islands, Taiwan, Canada and Brazil.
"It was very difficult; they were such a part of our lives," said Mrs. Bachler.
The couple then began raising commercial beef. After the five-year waiting period was over, they went back into dairy farming. In 2001, they sold their herd to a cattle dealer, again switching to Black Angus: They'd realized beef cattle were slightly easier to handle.
Though the cows can be very protective of their calves, "you don't have a milking routine," Mr. Bachler explained. "That was a lot of work."
The changes the Bachler farm has undergone aren't uncommon in Delaware County. Once largely dairy-focused, the area has turned into a leader in beef production.
Fewer family farms
The number of family farms has also dwindled. "We have some of our friends who have lost their farms," said Mr. Bachler.
"I miss not knowing each farm family," Mrs. Bachler told The Evangelist. As the disused farm buildings crumble, "there have been a lot of barns falling in."
The Bachlers' herd now consists of about 21 animals: about a dozen cows, a few bulls and some calves. "When we had a dairy [farm,] we had over 200 head" and milked around 110 cows every day, said Mr. Bachler.
"We used to go to the farmers' market with a freezer," Mrs. Bachler recalled. The couple doesn't typically slaughter their animals anymore; instead, they sell their cattle for breeding or to other farms for slaughter.
The Bachlers' cattle are grass-fed, though Mr. Bachler thinks that health kick may be "another fad. I don't know if it's healthy or not."
"People used to stop [at the farmers' market] and say, 'That steak looks delicious, but my doctor says I can't,'" said Mrs. Bachler.
The couple believes that everything is fine in moderation, including the unpasteurized milk that they once scooped right out of the milk tank.
Environmental issues
Mr. Bachler, who was also the town supervisor for 20 years, tries to stay involved in environmental issues important to the area. For example, the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program put up a fence on the Bachler farm to "fence the cattle out of the stream," said Mr. Bachler. That keeps the water in the stream clean. The CREP also created an alternate water system, a pond where the cattle can drink.
"We've always done a lot of conservation work," said Mr. Bachler, who is also involved in water quality control.
Mrs. Bachler noted the "satisfaction in growing things, things you grow with your hands."
"Farmers today are concerned about the environment," said Mr. Bachler. "We want to produce a good, healthy product."[[In-content Ad]]
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