Ag Community Relief is assembling donations of hay and other supplies, along with volunteers, to move into Oklahoma to assist those affected by wildfires over the past few days. Northwestern Oklahoma has seen close to 400,000 acres burned since late last week with roughly 13 percent contained. Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin declared a state of emergency on April 13 for 52 counties in the drought stricken region, opening up resources and funding for those areas.
Matt Schaller is president of Ag Community Relief. The Michigan-based non-profit 501(c)3 was formed in 2017 after the wildfires in Oklahoma and Kansas, to bring relief to active farmers and ranchers that experienced devastation across the U.S. by assembling volunteers and donations to help mitigate their suffering.
“Unfortunately, these folks are in the same boat as the people we helped last year,” said Schaller. “We’re asking that you take a look at your hay pile. Can you spare 6-8 round bales? Things are so dry there isn’t hay to be found in that area. We’ve been trying to find 30 bales around Ashland, Kansas for two weeks and nobody had any idea where we could find it. They all said you could travel 200 miles and not find anyone willing to let hay go.
“The Orphan Calf Relief that so many of you supported last year is beginning to assemble once again. Supplies needed are milk replacer, feed, small square bales, electrolytes, minerals, and funds to cover vet costs/meds required. You may think what you can give isn’t enough but we’ve all seen what we can do when we come together.”
Lapeer Farm and Garden in Lapeer, Michigan has offered to accept donations for anyone who wants to call and place an order by taking payment over the phone to send items to Oklahoma on Ag Community Relief’s volunteer-based convoy. They can be reached at (810) 664-2907. Items being asked for by ranchers are:
- Calf milk replacer (no soy)
- Bounceback
- Electrolytes
- Probiotics
- Calf Bottles
- Bottle holders
- Bucket nipples
- Milk bars
- Antibiotics
- Scour guard
- Bloat meds
- Boluse pills
- Buckets
- Starter feed
- Fluid Feeder
- “Sav a Calf”
- Powdered Milk (ex: Putin’s Dairy Calf 20-20)
- Vetericyn
- Aloe Vera
Trucks loaded with hay and supplies will depart for Oklahoma the evening of Wednesday April 18, with others possibly in the works, according to Schaller.
If you’re interested in donating or making the trip to Oklahoma, visit the Ag Community Relief Facebook page, agcommunityrelief.com or contact them at agcommunityrelief@gmail.com or 517-668-2676. All donations are tax deductible.
