PART OF A FAMILY. Ray DePriest and three
of his helpers: Ann Marie, seven years, Mich
elle, four years, and Georgia, one and one
half years. The rest of Ray's family include
Tiny, his wife, and four other children,
Edwin eight years, Linnus, five years, Ray
mond, three years, and Tommy, five
months. Ray is milking 41 cows and has one
of the top production, per cow, records in
the State.
Matanuska Maid Inc. Board Member
One of Alaska’s Outstanding Dairvmen
Ray DePriest is one of Alaska's outstanding
dairymen according to Sigmund H. Restad, Director of the
Division of Agriculture. Tiny Moose Dairy, located three
miles south of Palmer, is visual proof of this young dairy
man's ability to manage and succeed in a highly com
petitive business, he added.
Ray, 35 years old, has lived in Alaska most of his
life. In 1945, when he was seventeen years old, Ray
moved onto the Matanuska Valley farm from Nome with
his parents, Mr. and Mrs. L. M. DePriest. In 1957, upon
his father's retirement, Ray returned from the University
of Alaska wf^ere he had spent three years, to take over
the farm.
A family operation, Ray and his wife, Tiny, have
seven children all of whom help on the 225 acre farm.
Tiny is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Vickaryous, original
colonists in the Valley.
Ray raises nearly all of his feed for his 41 head of
Holsteins. Each year he harvests about 195 acres of
brome hay and oat/pea silage, and 30 acres of grain
According to the May report of the Dairy Herd
Improvement Association News, Ray's 305-day average
of 11,109 pounds of milk and 410 pounds of fat is among
the best of the herds currently tested by the Association.
Ray's top cow produced 15,863 pounds of milk on a 305
day basis.
Ray is also active in off-farm agricultural pursuits.
He is on the Board of Directors of Matanuska Maid., Inc.,
a County Committeeman of the Agricultural Conservation
and Stabilization Service, and a Director of the Matanuska
Valley Breeders Association.
Ray figures his 16-hour work day is worth it be
cause he is giving his family the advantages of whole
some outdoor living together with an opportunity to en
joy the beauty of the Matanuska Valley. He says, "Milk
is about as important a product as any man can produce."
He hopes to continue improving his herd average
by replacing some of his lower-producing cows with
heifers from his top producers while maintaining his herd
size.
; & z*
June Dairy Month, the nation's annual
salute to the dairy industry, is an excellent
time for homemakers to remember that
milk keeps people fit. The 27th anniver
sary of this nationwide dairy foods cam
paign serves as a fitting backdrop to high
light the importance of milk, exercise
and a balanced diet.
"I have long been convinced that milk
is an important aid to good health," com
mented President Kennedy at the Milk
and Nutrition Conference held in Wash
ington, D. C. last year. "If we are going
to be a vigorous and vital nation as we
all desire, then, of course, we must de
pend on the consumption of a balanced
diet. And milk must be a part of it."
Keeping fit isn't merely doing daily
pushups and drinking sauerkraut juice.
A well balanced diet plays a major role
in physical fitness. Add to this a sensible
program of exercise all through life and
moderation in all things.
Bud Wilkinson, head of the President's
Council on Youth Fitness, urges Ameri
cans to get themselves into sound exer
cise programs and follow good eating
habits." Our surveys have shown," he
said, "that malnourishment is not limited
to low income groups. A large percent
age were from the high income groups,
mainly because the children were sat
isfied with soft drinks and sandwiches "
Teen Age Girls Called “Poorly Fed”
In terms of eating enough of
the necessary food nutrients,
teen-age girls are the most
poorly fed group in the U.S. to
day, and this is true regardless
of social and economic levels
of the families.
The girls’ diets are most like
ly to be low in ascorbic acid
(primarily from citrus fruits)
and calcium (of which milk is j
the main source in the U. S.
diet). '
■
Many of the girls haven’:
learned the importance of £
well-balanced diet. Yes, a well
balanced diet will be specially
important to many of them, as
more are marrying these days,
and many will become mothers
during the next few years.
A quarter-million scientists
in the United States are cur
rently working on research
projects related to agriculture.
S^/WWWW/I WSA^VWWWVWWWI
EXTRA PRETTY
Here are a couple of tricks
for making milk look extra
pretty and appetite appealing.
Use colored glasses, or glasses
that are decorated with vari
ous colors or designs. Frosted
glasses are attractive too, es
pecially for summer.
Varicolored coaster baskets,
for your glasses will lend a
| party touch.
Salmon eggs hatch in 50 days
in 50 degree water.
I
Miss Sandra Lee Tibeau, the
■ American Dairy Princess, is
■‘'speaking up” for June Dairy
[Month throughout the United
[states. She began in Maine on
|May 25 and will finish in North
I Dakota on June 26.
In addition to visiting all the
|New England states, Sandy will
'travel to New' York, Utah, Mis
souri, Iowa, Indiana, Illinois,
Nebraska and South Dakota.
Sandy is the vocal represen
tative of the dairy farmer
members of the American
Dairy Association. In addition
to her regular duties she visited
Puerto Rico as a guest of their
Holstein Assocation, danced
the “twist” with Liberace and
rode the Palomino lead horse
for an Arizona rodeo.
Sandy, representing the state
of Washington, was selected
from 31 finalists on September
12, 1962. She will surrender her
crown to her successor in Mi
ami, Florida, on September 17,
1963.
| Twenty-year-old Sandy, a
| full-time employee of the
| American Dairy Association
I during her reign, is the daugh
Iter of Mr. and Mrs. Alex Ti
beau. The family’s dairy farm
of 292 acres is located near Au
burn, Washington.
Sandra Lee Tibeau, American Dairy Princess, 1963
. % «
U
fW
DaiRY
# V
AMERICAN DAIRY
ASSOCIATION
OF ALASKA