Week of January 22nd, 2006 | The weather was warm and sunny.

Thank you, James!

The staff and farmers of Organic Valley would like to thank James Frantzen for five years of dedication and service to our cooperative and our growing community of partners and friends. Through his weekly online journal, James has shared the amazing experience of growing up on an organic farm. During that time, he has acquired an impressive amount of farming wisdom, and helped light the way for the next generation of organic farmers.

James is the original Organic Valley blogger! In five years of writing, he never missed a deadline. Each week, he brought us stories and pictures of what was happening on his family's Iowa farm. Revisiting his earliest journal entries along with some of the most recent, we see lots of changes and growth in the Frantzen farm and the family alike.

Now a senior in high school, James has a rather full plate, so he has gracefully submitted his official resignation from our web team. While we will miss his regular contributions, we are happy to support him in his many current pursuits. Here's a sampling of what he's up to:

• Future Farmers of America (FFA)—New Hampton Chapter officer and committee member
• 4-H - Alta Vista Aces Chapter Vice President
• New Hampton High School Concert Band—First Chair Trombone
• New Hampton High School Spirit Jazz Band—Trombone player
• New Hampton High School Paper, "Chieftain"—Editor
• New Hampton High School—Web Site Editor
• Character Counts - New Hampton Community Task Force Member
• Part-time employment at Morris Landscaping—caring for trees and plants and helping customers
• Helping his family with the farm
• Completing high school!

James hasn't made any big decisions about what he'll do after graduation, but he's quite certain that his career will be in the field of agriculture. What a gift for all of us!

Inspired by James, we've got big plans to bring more young voices to this place on our web site. "James' Journal" is becoming "James & Friends," where we'll share letters from more of the youth in our family farm co-op. We'll also maintain the online archive of James' journal entries for all to review and enjoy, as they are timeless in many ways. We're hopeful that James will send us an occasional update, as he enters new chapters in his life! If you're not a current subscriber to James' Journal (James & Friends), you can subscribe now by joining Farm Friends.

Many thanks, James! You're an inspiration to us all.

From your friends and admirers at Organic Valley!

Farm Fact: In his 5 years of writing James' Journal, James has written 220 articles on every aspect of life on the farm.