During summer vacations I returned to Lambarene to help in
the hospital and to learn more about Schweitzer’s Ethic Reverence for
Life and how this ethic gave meaning to man’s responsibility for stewardship
of all that lives, including land and all that nature has given us.
Schweitzer once said that when a farmer spends all day mowing
grass to feed his cattle, he has no right on his way home to
chop off the head of a buttercup thoughtlessly.
After finishing residency training in pediatrics at the Mayo
Clinic, with my wife Ruth and three children, we began a search
for a place to put down roots, and where a doctor was needed.
We eventually found Celo Farm, a beautiful piece of ground waiting
to be cared for.
We began work on the Pope Family Farm. I discovered how to
practice medicine and farming together. Ruth and I must have
worked the children too hard!
Our two daughters have settled on the West Coast and our son,
Daniel, has a mulch yard in Asheville and retails our Christmas
trees in Houston, Texas.
Four years ago, we sold our small Angus cow/calf operation and
teamed up with some young, idealistic would-be organic farmers
who were looking for land. We have fitted together well and with
help from 4 to 5 interns from Central Piedmont Community College,
we are ready to expand from organic vegetables to try organic
Fraser Fir and beef. Nature has been good to us so far.
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