If you’re a farmer with an injury, illness, or aging condition, Michigan AgrAbility can provide services to help you keep farming.
Monte Bordner, who owns Bordner Angus Farms and is a beef cattle producer near Sturgis in St. Joseph County, says he had several setbacks that have made it far more difficult for him to get the job done on his farm.
“In 2021 I was having problems with the sciatic nerve damage in my back and right leg and ended up with nerve damage in my right foot, so it doesn’t work like it used to,” says Bordner. “Then, in the fall of that year, I had quadruple bypass surgery which kind of takes the wind out of your sails for a while. I’m doing well from that but it’s not 100 percent.
That’s when a friend told him that Michigan AgrAbility could help.
“We did bring in Kevin Gould, who was on the Michigan State University Extension beef team, to help with the facilities upgrade,” says Bordner. “We had a good working facility, but we didn’t have a lot of concrete around it and it just seemed like around here wherever the concrete ends, the mud starts. It was very difficult for me to work cattle by myself and if we had to do something, it always seemed like you had to get an army of people around to help.”
Not only did Michigan AgrAbility work with Monte to design and install updated working facilities for his cattle, but they also made some modifications to his tractors and skid steer to help put far less strain on his body and his stamina.
“Help is incredibly hard to get, and everything they did has all been very helpful,” he says. “It’s really been a Godsend to be able to work those cows when I need to and keep working so we can ‘keep the lights on’ and the old guy can still keep up with the task at hand, so to speak.”
If you would like to help Michigan AgrAbility in their mission to help other farmers, such as Monte Bordner, you can make your donation at MichiganAgrAbility.org/donate.
CLICK BELOW to hear Michigan Ag Today’s full conversation with Michigan beef producer Monte Bordner of Sturgis, who shares with C.J. Miller the full extent of how the Michigan AgrAbility team helped him with modifications to his cattle operation and equipment so he can continue running his farm.
