Twenty nine years ago, my twin sister Terri and I were vying for the title of Princess Kay of the Milky Way. We were told it was not uncommon for sisters to compete for the crown, but it was the first time that identical twins had ever challenged one another in the competition.

 

If Terri and I would have advanced to the regional Princess Kay competition (organized by Midwest Dairy Association), we would have had a 90 pound likeness of our heads sculptured in butter in the dairy building at the Minnesota State Fair (the practice started in 1965). The carving takes 6-8 hours per finalist and has been done by Linda Christensen for the past 40 years. Princesses get to take their sculptures home with them at the end of the state fair. 

 

Although my twin sister and I didn’t advance in the competition, we served as dairy princesses for Sherburne County for that year. We participated in local parades and served ice cream at area businesses in June to commemorate National Dairy Month, promote drinking nutrient-rich milk and celebrate the contributions the dairy industry has made to the world. 

 

My sister Gloria also participated in the Sherburne County dairy princess competition in 1973 at the Americana Inn in St. Cloud and recalled how excited she was to spend her first night in a motel because of the competition. Gloria said: “I was instructed to bring street clothes in addition to a formal dress.” It was an exciting experience when mom took her to J.C. Penney and she bought a wonderful white pleated formal dress and two nice outfits. The winner that year was Lori Anshus from Canby, Minnesota - niece of Becker resident Dean (Val) Anshus. 

 

Sherburne County has seen a drastic decline in dairy operations in recent years. The pool of candidates for dairy princess was slim in the 1980’s and Sherburne County has not had any participants in the Princess Kay competition for a number of years.

 

Currently, there are only a handful of dairy farmers in Sherburne County. My brothers Roger and Russell Erickson are among the few who milk cows in Sherburne County. Kris and Diane Person and son Andrew, along with Ray Person are in their 40th year of milking cows near Clear Lake. 

 

Local residents Howard and JoAnn Johnson started milking cows near Becker in the early 1970’s. Howard, JoAnn and sons Jamie and Joe have a robotic dairy operation of 250 Holstein milk cows near Clearwater Lake (South Haven area). Their herd has transponders around their neck, which identify each cow in the high-tech process. 

 

This past weekend, I had the honor of serving as a judge for the Princess Kay of the Milky Way competition held at St. Cloud State University and judged 52 young women competing (the speech portion). The field was narrowed to twelve at the end of the competition last weekend. 

 

My paternal grandfather Carl Erickson farmed in Sweden until he emigrated here via Ellis Island in 1905 in pursuit of the American Dream. He couldn’t speak English when he arrived. A man on the boat from Sweden told him: “If you can say bacon and eggs, you’ll always be able to get a good meal!”  

 

Grandpa Carl bought the farm near Santiago in 1921 but continued to live and work in Minneapolis as a streetcar conductor and attended night school to learn English.

 

Random trivia: My maternal grandfather (Thoulow Gilyard) was also a streetcar conductor in Minneapolis around the same time! 

 

Carl settled on the farm five miles south of Santiago in 1933. He worked the tillable land with horses on the farm, much different from today’s farming practices and conveniences. Carl diligently saved money to get his sister Ida to Minnesota, which he accomplished. He also dreamed of getting one of his other siblings over but wasn’t able to because the depression hit. 

 

After Earl’s death, my dad’s brother Herb continued to farm and lived on the property until 2001 when he passed away. My brother Roger and his wife Sandy now live on the original homestead, milking cows and raising crops. 

 

My brother Russell and my son Alex milk have continued the farming operation my mom and dad operated from 1950 thru the late 1990’s after my dad passed away.

 

Russell and Alex milk approximately 60 Holsteins and raise crops just across the pasture from where my grandpa Carl settled. 

 

Farming is a noble profession in my eyes. Only the steady and the strong are able to do it. It instills tremendous work ethic and reliability. Although I didn’t achieve the title of Princess Kay of the Milky Way - working on a farm helped me appreciate the value of hard work and appreciate every meal. Farming was the central part of our whole world. It was surely a blessing being born and raised on a farm.