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QUEEN ANNE – Atlantic Tractor took the pink turn last week by unveiling the region's first John Deere pink tractor.
The tractor was sold to a farmer and breast cancer advocate, Beth Steeley, of Queenstown.
Steeley is an organic farmer and a trained veterinary technician who raises goats, bees and a rare breed of chickens. Its mission is to help the growth and development of women in agriculture and to promote awareness of breast cancer.
Steeley saw his pink tractor for the first time during the inauguration on September 19 in the Atlantic Tractor showroom. With October being Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Steeley and Lynn Malkus-Lyons, spokesperson for Atlantic Tractor, agreed the timing was ideal.
The idea of having a pink tractor came to Steeley, she said, after reading that John Deere had made bespoke tractors – white for the Queen of England and black for the pope's guard. John Deere has also announced pink tractors for breast cancer awareness.
Steeley, who has a personal connection (her aunt has experienced two devastating cases of the disease), wanted to use her tractor to encourage other women to fight breast cancer while raising awareness and drawing attention to the disease. attention on women in agriculture.
Farm women often have more difficulties, Steeley said, adding that women are often at the center of farming activities and that women often take the habit of minimizing their own health problems and are reluctant to ask to be involved. # 39; s help.
Steeley said that she had approached several dealers and that she had been surprised to learn that she wanted to buy her package of tractor hay in pink. After being denied by others, Hunter Allen at Atlantic Tractor told Steeley, "Why not?
Steeley said that she was embarrassed with attention at first, but she is grateful to have the opportunity to represent not only women, but a less traditional approach to women. Agriculture.
The 21-acre farm in Queenstown is significantly smaller than the farm on which Steeley grew up in Texas, but it will not keep him off the beaten path, she added. It plans to grow vertically, optimizing the potential for more crops in a smaller space.
Steeley said she would like to create a non-profit association to help people grow on small lots, taking five or ten acres and finding a way to make it sustainable and profitable. Most government programs are not designed to help small farmers who want to be treated as businesses, not as hobby farmers, she added.
With the help of other women, like Jenny Rhodes with the University of Maryland's Extension Service, more resources are now available to help new farmers with workshops and tutorials, including a coaching of entrepreneurs.
"It's a great pleasure to see all the tractor sellers here today in pink hats," Steeley said. "Congratulations to you all here. The experience was shared: Atlantic Tractor said yes to the idea of a pink tractor, a community to support women in agriculture and women who encourage others women to quickly screen for breast cancer. Now we include many other members of the Atlantic Tractor family.
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