Steffey'i handsome Durocs are about ready for shipping. Here he discusses when to 

 ship with one of his operating partners, Clifford Gray. 





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oDitectot Kytto S!^tefPeu id 



By JIM THOMSON 



Ass't Editor, lAA RECORD 



FOUR trips around the world — 

 100,000 miles — would involve 

 Quite a bit of travel. That's the 

 distance Otto Steffey of Hender- 

 son county figures he has covered 

 going to and from lAA meetings 

 during the 14 years he has been a mem- 

 ber of the board of directors. 



StefFey has represented the counties 

 of Rock Island, Mercer, Warren, Hen- 

 derson, Hancock, and McDonough on 

 the Illinois Agricultural Association 

 board of directors since 1933, and has 

 served as chairman of the organization- 

 information committee of the lAA 

 since 1937. 



Though he is one of the oldest mem- 

 bers of the board in point of service, 

 Steffey's youthful enthusiasm for his 

 work with Farm Bureau labels him as 

 one of the youngest men on the board. 



Director Steffey drills a hole through an angle 

 iron en a wagon at his farm. 



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This is the 11th of a series of articles to 

 further acquaint you with the men who 

 represent you on the Illinois Agricultural 

 Association hoard of directors. 



He has the lean muscular look of a 

 busy farmer or a well-conditioned ath- 

 lete. Because next to farming, the lAA 

 director from the I4th congressional 

 district likes to spend his time at the 

 playing field of on the bank of a stream 

 or lake where he can do some fishing. 



Love of sport makes Steffey a natural 

 to take charge of the Illinois Farm 

 Sports Festival on which he has served 

 as chairman since the war ended. 



He was one of a small group of men 

 who conceived and developed the 

 "Sports Festival Idea." The thought 

 behind the movement was that when 

 young people have learned to play to- 

 gether, have learned to play hard but 

 fair, have learned to take defeat with a 

 smile, but with a determination to play 

 better next time, they will develop a 

 philosophy that will pay farm people 

 big dividends in working together. 



Born and reared on a farm near the 

 village of Stronghurst, Steffey attended 

 Stronghurst schools while helping with 

 his father's dairy. During World War 

 I, which was immediately after his 

 graduation from high school, he 

 worked on his father's farm. 



The year following their marriage in 

 1919, Steffey and the former Ruth 



Davis of Stronghurst, bought a farm 

 eight miles south of Lansing, Mich. 

 During the year they farmed in Michi- 

 gan, the Steffeys became charter mem- 

 bers of the Ingham County Farm Bu- 

 reau. ;-..■ 



But their hearts were back in Illinois 

 where they returned to buy the 160- 

 acre farm on which Mrs. Steffey was 

 born and reared. Mr. and Mrs. Stef- 

 fey, incidentally, were born on the 

 same day within an hour of each other. 

 Their only child is a 17-year-old high 

 school senior, Shirley Ann. Another 

 daughter died in infancy 26 years ago. 



In 1937 Director Steffey bought a 

 210-acre farm three-quarters of a mile 

 from the home place. He operated 

 both farms himself until a year ago 

 when he went into a livestock share- 

 lease agreement with his two hired 

 men. 



During his farming career Steffey 

 has been interested chiefly in the rais- 

 ing and feeding of livestock. Annually 

 he has averaged 100-200 beef cattle ana 

 200 hogs. At present he maintains an 

 Aberdeen-Angus breeding herd with a 

 few Shorthorns and 250 Duroc hogs. 

 He also has a small herd of 20 ewes 

 and a few dairy cows for personal 

 needs. 



A shrewd manager, Steffey has kept 

 farm account books for 22 years, the 

 last several of which have been with the 

 Farm Bureau-Farm Management Serv- 

 ice. He especially appreciates the ac- 



Shailed area on map Is 14th congressional 



district represented on Illinois Agricultural 



Association board of directors by Otto 



Steffey of Stronghurst. 



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