Hey there, neighbors. 

Ten years ago, Wendy Yeager warmly welcomed an aspiring reporter to her family’s Bell Place Farm. The young writer wielded a notepad, pen, camera and natural curiosity — time-tested tools of her trade-to-be.

Wendy graciously gabbed about her farm, family and experience as a woman in agriculture, her infectious smile a balm for the journalist’s nerves.

I was that cub reporter.

A decade into my career with the Alabama Farmers Federation, I’ve had the honor of visiting Wendy’s Dallas County farm many times, most recently on a steamy July morning.

The long rows of lush peanuts, cotton and grains were familiar. So, too, were Wendy’s humor, humility, intelligence and enthusiasm.

She’s a stellar farmer, committed wife to Jamie and rock star example to daughters Casey and Lil.

She’s also my friend — a neighbor of sorts.

Geographically, we’re not neighbors at all. My husband, Sellers, and I live in south Montgomery County more than an hour from Orrville. Her farm, too, is miles from my original stomping grounds among the pine plantations of Marengo County.

Our connection defies distance.

Writers for the Alabama Farmers Federation have formed relationships like this since our organization’s inception in 1921. From the get-go, printed publications have circulated among our membership to document the ins and outs of agriculture.

Since 1975, we’ve had the particular pleasure of sharing the stories of real Alabama farmers through Neighbors magazine.

While preparing for this special 50th anniversary issue, our staff has thumbed through countless pages of archived magazines dating back to that first autumn edition. 

Neighbors has evolved in her 50-year history. Initial issues were thin newsprint with minimal pops of color. Today’s magazine is slick, glossy and flush with vibrant shades. Our stories are a bit briefer, and our staff has surely changed.

Our intent, however, endures.

Charles McCay was general manager when Neighbors’ inaugural issue hit mailboxes on what I’d like to think was a crisp fall day. In that very first magazine, McCay wrote, “Our goal is to entertain you and inform you with a Southern country flavor. Our only interest is to serve your interest.”

That’ll preach.

So will my favorite scripture.

James 1:2-3 delivers this nugget of wisdom.

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, when you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.”

Joy. Faith. Perseverance.

Farmers live out these ideals. 

You have to when so many factors are at the mercy of our Heavenly Father, whether you’re planting a seed, tending a herd or managing a stand of timber.

That faith inspires me each time I step on a farm, climb in a tractor, pepper conversation with questions and shoot “just one more picture” — all with the goal of capturing a lifestyle that’s absolutely ordinary to those who live it but wonderfully extraordinary to the rest of our population.

I hope our readers feel like they’ve met these hardworking, humble, fun (and funny), faith-filled farmers every time they read Neighbors magazine.

I want you to know Keith Glover, Chris Langley and Jimmy Parnell.

I want you to root for Nikki Dyess, Lisa Lake and Karah Skinner.

I want you to learn from Chuck Madaris, Mike Reeves and Andy Wendland.

So, grab a cup of coffee, settle into your comfiest chair and start learning about these folks — your newest neighbors.

I hope you enjoy reading this magazine as much as our team enjoyed creating it.

God bless,

Marlee Jackson
Editor, Neighbors