Imagine, if you will, a start up professional ice hockey team that was part of some fringe hockey league getting two of the NHL's best players to join their ranks for the season.
Well, that is pretty much what happened to us when we got two professional Field Workers who came all the way from Mexico to be part of our farm. We were vigorously inspected by all the requirements of the federal Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) program and having them here is literally a game changer.
Marcelino is the real deal. At the tender age of 12 started his work life by joining his father in the small town that they were from to go and work for the man in the giant fields that surround them. By 14 he was operating a tractor independently as a full member of the crew. Impacted by the fuel price hikes caused by the Russian/Ukraine conflict the fleets of equipment were stilled and parked. As a result he has made the very difficult decision, speaking only Spanish, to leave his wife and two young children for the first time and come to work in Canada. His level of skill as an equipment operator is unparalled. Creating planting lines with laser like accuracy and only stops when his keenly honed instincts tell him something is amiss or he sees trouble ahead. He operates our tractor like it is his own.
Jaime, has a what my brother likes to say, a bit of tumbleweed in him. For many years, he has left his home and family that he cares for deeply, to work for a number of operations throughout the United States. He is extremely intelligent, mechanically inclined and very creative with his solutions to the challenges we face. His help setting up our new equipment and getting it to work well for us has been invaluable. Fortunately, he does speak English and that has certainly been helpful. He brings a diverse set of skills along with a personal committment to making a difference wherever he goes and he has certainly done that here. Yesterday he celebrated his birthday with us. Another year older, another adventure. The stories he tells are incredible.
Eating, shopping and working together has brought us close. These are my brothers in the field and I am very proud and grateful to have them here with us for this season.
Speaking of seasons...ours is going quite well. Despite such a challenging start everything that is planted is growing remarkably well. Soon the fields will be full of vegetables and our harvest wagon will be laden with fresh produce destined for your table.
Enjoy :-)
~Michael
