A member of the community raises his hand to donate money to fund Farm Bureau scholarships during the  Farmer-Merchant Banquet at the Blue Mountain Conference Center in La Grande on Thursday, Nov. 3, 2022. 

LA GRANDE — Debra Hansen sounds torn when she discusses her craft — that of raising cattle. “It is a lot of hard work all year round and it does not pay well,” she said. “Still, I want to do it. There is just something in it.”

Like the thrill she feels after saving a newborn calf in peril because of freezing conditions.

“That is the most rewarding part of this,” she said.

Hansen’s passion for raising cattle is as high now as it was decades ago when she started. This passion and her commitment to family and community service were saluted Thursday, Nov. 3, when she received the Ag Woman of the Year Award at the 73rd Farmer-Merchant Banquet, held at the Blue Mountain Conference Center, La Grande.

The event, put on by the Union County Chamber of Commerce, returned this year after being canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021.

“It is a very big honor,” Hansen said of receiving the award. “I’m very humbled.”

Hansen, who grew up in Enterprise and has lived in Cove since 1986, has been raising cattle since 1977. Today, she and son Darren raise a herd of 160 cattle.

The cattle they raise all have different temperaments, including some who are cantankerous. Hansen said she’ll never forget a cow she had who refused to let anyone get near her calves.

“She would chase you away,” she said.

The cow’s possessive demeanor made it impossible for anyone to put ear tags on her calves.

“Whenever we spotted a calf without an ear tag, we knew it was hers,” she said.

Hansen and her son will soon enter the most difficult portion of their year — calving season. Once it starts in late fall, Hansen said, they sometimes find themselves working around the clock and always have to be ready if a cow needs help giving birth.

“We work in shifts. Somebody in our family is always up and checking our cows,” she said.

Hansen’s agricultural background also includes 20 years of working in the custom harvesting business with Darren and her late son, Dwayne. Hansen helped run H and H Custom Harvesting from 1987 to 2007. The company harvested the crops of corporate farms in Washington and family farms in Northeastern Oregon. The crops they harvested included wheat, grass seed and canola.

“It was almost as challenging as calving, but we enjoyed the people and the work,” she said.

Hansen got her start by working in partnership with Rocky and Bev Hagan. In the mid-1990s, Hansen bought out the Hagans and became sole owner of H and H Custom Harvesting.

Hansen was introduced at the banquet by Cheryl Martin, who praised her commitment to agriculture, her family and her community. Martin noted that Hansen volunteered for the Cove Rural Fire Department for 33 years, was president of the Cove Booster Club for about 10 years, has served as secretary for the Union County Cattlemen’s Association, is a lifetime member of Eastern Star and has been a full-time day care worker.

“There are so many people who love and respect this very busy ag woman,” Martin said. “Not all superheroes wear capes. Some wear boots and know how to use a crockpot. Deb Hansen is truly a superhero.”

Reed honored with Steward of the Year award

Jesse Reed has devoted much of his life over the past three years helping to secure the future of the Mount Emily Recreation Area, and this dedication was recognized at the Farmer-Merchant Banquet when he received the Union County Forest Steward of the Year Award.

“I have never been nominated for an award like this,” he said. “It means a lot.”

Reed is the co-owner of ReedCo Forestry, a company the county contracted with to help build one of two major firebreaks in the Mount Emily Recreation Area north of La Grande in 2020. The firebreak Reed’s company created is about 6 miles long on MERA’s Mainline Trail, which runs north-south starting from the recreation site’s parking lot off Fox Hill Road.

Reed’s company in 2021 and this year has been doing major forest management work in the Red Apple area of MERA to reduce the possibility of a major wildfire striking the popular hiking and mountain biking site.

The work Reed is doing at MERA, now 75% completed, is designed to make the Red Apple area safer and the forest healthier by reducing stand density and adding to the number of fire-resistant trees. The work the company is doing involves some logging, which helps the local economy, Reed noted.

“All of the logs are going to local mills,” he said.

Travis Lowe, who presented the award to Reed, said he was impressed by his interaction with Reed as the business owner was working in the Red Apple area. It was evident, Lowe said, how remarkably committed Reed is to practicing good forestry.

“His honesty and tenacity really sunk in with me,” he said.

The following were honored Thursday, Nov. 3, during the 73rd Union County Farmer-Merchant Banquet at the Blue Mountain Conference Center in La Grande:

Union County Ag Woman of the Year: Debra Hansen

Union County Forest Steward of the Year: Jesse Reed

Cattleman of the Year: Jim Richards

Young Farmer of the Year: Max Nillson

Good Steward award winner No. 1: Robert and Wendy Langford 

Good Steward award winner No. 2: Diane Kinsley

Ecological Restoration award: David Lowe 

“Not all superheros wear capes. Some wear boots and know how to use a crockpot. Deb Hansen is truly a superhero.”

— Cheryl Martin, when presenting Hansen the 2022 Union County Ag Woman of the Year award

“His honesty and tenacity really sunk in with me.”

— Travis Lowe, of Jessie Reed, recipient of the 2022 Union County Forest Steward of the Year award