One of the highlights of my life and career was working close to Frank Stronach. Frank was very generous in his listening to the needs of people. I recall him describing himself as ‘the last communist.'
Recently, Frank has been writing articles in the National Post. Each of his articles represent a lifetime of values always based upon people. Frank was a farmer at heart. We often met in his barn on a Saturday morning. He told me many times that he admired the common sense and independence of the agricultural life.
In honour of National Ag Day, here is a quote from Stronach, a great Canadian success story, about the need for public policy support the conditions of success for agriculture:
“Mid-sized family farms are simply too small to compete with larger, heavily mechanized farms. If these smaller farms grew organic foods, they would be more competitive and have a greater chance of survival. But they still need some assistance during the conversion to organic agriculture, which is why we need to get smarter about our agricultural policies and other support mechanisms if we wish to preserve family farming. We also need to ensure that our family farmers make enough income to support themselves, either through subsidies or tax breaks.”
These are prophetic observations made out of respect for the family farm and for the betterment of the community.
Wayne Olson
Ward 1 Councillor
Town of Pelham
