In celebration of Ag Week, Alliance Bank is celebrating the stories of farmers in our community…
How It Began
Natalie Waling never imagined being a farm wife. “My parents were educators.” Her mom a high school English teacher and her father the Head of the Communications Department at St. Joseph’s College. Yet, at the age of 18 she found herself in love with a farmer, “I could see Randy had roots…connection…I think farming was an attraction for me.”
Randy Waling had just finished at Purdue and returned to his hometown of Rensselaer to farm. “Natalie’s mom was one of my two favorite high school teachers,” recalls Randy. “I always thought to myself, she teaches like she’s somebody’s mom.” It took less than a year of dating before the couple married in 1976. Natalie’s mom was correct, “You’ll know when it’s right.” As I sit at the Waling’s dining room table, 47 years later, I listen to their story unfold.
Natalie had started college when she became pregnant with their first daughter, Elaine. After their second daughter Rachel was born, she went back to St. Joe to finish her teaching degree. It was a busy time for the young family. Randy and Natalie would have two more daughters, Millie and Jessie, and Natalie went on to Purdue to complete her Masters.
Navigating Life
Randy recalls, “The 80’s were tough. Interest rates were high, double what they are today.” The Walings created many fond memories with their girls through 4-H. “We would buy their steers, but then let the girls put the auction checks away for college. We couldn’t have saved from our farming income back then,” admits Randy.
The couple went on to talk about the evolution of technology over their careers, on the farm and Natalie’s 37 years as a teacher. The couple laughs about phones; they lived the evolution from party line to land line. The convenience of the bag phone was revolutionizing -never mind the overage charges on their 60-minute plan! Randy and Natalie admit adapting to new technology does not come naturally for their generation, but they knew they needed to learn the technology and could reap the benefits.
The Golden Years
Today, the Walings have begun transitioning the farming operation to their son-in-law Charlie and daughter, Elaine. Randy and Charlie started farming together back in 2011, primarily tenant farmers. “I help Charlie get equipment ready for Spring, and I still go out to the shop every day,” chuckles Randy. “I continue to farm the 170 acres we own, but I am giving Charlie space to continue on his own.”
Admittedly, Randy still feels the stress and responsibility of making decisions for the farm. He realizes he wants to tackle some things on his bucket list while he still feels like doing them. “I like to work on things. I’ve never been the ‘take the plastic off the seats’ type; I like older equipment.” Randy first started tinkering 10 years ago on a 1972 Cutlass. Afraid to take it out for drives, he later purchased a 1944 International pick-up. Over two years Randy restored the former fire truck and learned how to do many new things. He and Natalie like to dust it off and take it for a cruise.
“I like being my own boss,” responds Randy, when I ask him what he enjoys most about farming. “You do something different every day, and no one is going to do it for you.” The ‘town girl’ who never imagined life on a farm agrees, “What is it they say…If you love what you’re doing, you never work a day in your life.” Natalie got used to being a ‘farm wife’, “I enjoyed it. I got to use my hands. I felt grounded because my husband enjoyed it.”
The Walings feel the same as many retirees, “you don’t have as much free time as you think you will.” Randy recently retired from the Ceres Solutions Board and still finds plenty of work to do on the farm. Randy and Natalie enjoy spending time with their daughters’ families, particularly their 14 grandchildren. Natalie now helps their granddaughters with 4-H sewing projects, and she appreciates her freedom to help people in the community.
