A Positive Personality

Haley Ramer of Mountain View has had a busy summer. Between trips to national competitions with two different school groups, harvesting hay and doing other farm chores, and working odd jobs, she has found time for her favorite pastimes: baking and swimming.

“Baking and swimming are my two favorite things, ever, and I’ve been doing a bunch of that this summer,” she said.

The daughter of Nathan and Kim Ramer, she lives on Luber Road where the family tends a herd of about 40 beef cattle, mostly black angus.

“This summer when I wasn’t on the school trips I was in the hay field with Dad,” she said. Hauling equipment or raking hay are her usual jobs, but she helped fix the baler when it malfunctioned.
Her daily chores include gathering eggs from two ducks and an assortment of hens, and making sure the fowl are penned up safely each evening.

“They’re so cute, just always waddling around. They go in and out by themselves,” she said. “Plus, they have eggs, and that goes back into baking.”

Duck eggs are larger than hen eggs and Haley says they make baked goods nice and fluffy. She has to work for them, though.

“It’s like a scavenger hunt trying to get the duck eggs,” she commented, explaining that unlike the hens, the ducks do not go into nesting boxes, but will lay eggs wherever they happen to be. Like hens, they typically lay one egg per day.

Along with her most favorite things, she also enjoys skeet shooting and deer hunting with her uncles and their families, and her brother, Kobe, who is 14.

“I definitely have a village, and I’m so blessed,” she commented.

Haley was occupied with the school trips for about a month, but tried to find a job that would accommodate that and her family vacation. She ended up doing odd jobs such as housekeeping and dog sitting.

If she had been older she might have implemented a business plan she created for a class two years ago – Farm Sitters – that would enable farmers to actually take a vacation while someone else tends to animals and oversees an operation. People need a break from the stress of worrying about debt and other factors, pressures that seem to be increasing, she said, adding that the suicide rate among farmers is high.
High School Principal Matt Sullivan was impressed with her plan, and continues to encourage her.

Haley developed the business plan in a class taught by Carrie Reading, who Haley said has helped her with a multitude of challenges large and small.

Mya Burns, who taught Haley in Algebra II, is another teacher whose support will be remembered.

“I’m not very good at math and even when I struggled she never made me feel stupid. She encouraged me and helped me constantly.”

Haley has perhaps worked most closely with agri teacher Austin Kennon, who has guided her toward various opportunities as she has advanced in the FFA chapter he sponsors.

“One of the blessings in my career is to watch kids mature in their talents,” Austin commented. “It’s like observing a garden fill in. Haley Ramer is one of those students that has such curiosity and energy about her, you know her horizon looks interesting. She has a servant’s heart.”

Haley has known from a young age that she wanted to be active in agriculture.

“Growing up on the farm, you see the cows and you get to see the birthing process ... this is life. You get to see miracles happen every day. Growing up around that, I always knew that I wanted to get more involved.”

Her introduction to FFA came in fifth grade, when her class visited the animals that ag students brought to school.

“That’s when I knew I wanted to be in FFA,” she said, and she got involved as soon as she could, four years later.

“I just fell in love with it. There were so, so many opportunities.”

She participates in Leadership Development Events and has competed in Prepared Speaking, for which she chose the topic “Women and Minorities in Agriculture.” She also studied parliamentary procedure and became interested in being an officer, so she worked her way from treasurer, to vice president and now is chapter president in her senior year.

She is also active in FBLA, where she earned a trip to national level at San Antonio competing in Job Interview.
Haley was also part of the Beta Club’s talent group that went to national convention in Nashville. Originally, her part in the skit involved only holding a board in the background, but she was thrust into a starring role when someone got sick.

“They gave me a script and three days,” she said.

Haley also competes on the school’s tennis team.

With senior year underway, Haley is not sure what path she will pursue. With a range of interests including teaching, agriculture, banking and occupational therapy, she has options.

“My friends call me ‘Positive Patricia’ because I like everything.”

She had applied to both Southern Arkansas University and University of Central Arkansas with “undecided” under declared major.

“There are so many opportunities in ag, especially coming from FFA,” she commented. “There’s a lot I like, which everyone says is a good problem to have.”