Alabama NRCS Employees Pitch In
Washington
County, Alabama, NRCS Soil Conservation Technician Brian Coaker is a busy man.
Last week he got even busier. Brian raises layer chickens from biddies to
adults in four breeder pullet chicken houses. High winds during Hurricane
Katrina tore off several sections on two of his chicken houses (not to mention
part of the roof on his home). Fortunately, no chickens were in the houses
during the storm so he did not have economic losses in that respect.
However, the chicken business is a high cash flow enterprise and without being
able to accept a new batch of biddies, he definitely would suffer future
losses. He had to get his chicken houses re-roofed in a hurry. But, has anyone
ever tried to hire a contractor following a hurricane? Well, they are hard to
schedule.
Word about Brian’s predicament got around at the Jackson Service Center that
servesserving Washington and Clarke Counties. Over the course of two days, two
soil scientists (Joey Koptis and Sandy Page), a Soil Conservationist (Don
Nelson), and FSA County Executive Director, Wyatt Hendry, took time off from
work to join forces with several of Brian’s family members to help get those
sections of roof back on the chicken houses. Brian and his father-in-law, Max
Johnson (brother of retired NRCS Resource Soil Scientist, Ken Johnson) spent
the better part of a weekend and two evenings removing the parts of the roof
that were damaged. Once the demolition was completed, the crew went to work
installing 360 feet by 20 feet of lath and tin.
This is just one of many instances of friends, family, and, in many instances,
just concerned individuals, coming to the aid of those in need resulting from
Hurricane Katrina damage.
Thanks to the work of these individuals, the Coaker family is ready to receive
the next batch of biddies.
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