The Waiting Game
The Waiting Game by Central Michigan Life editor-in-chief Isaac Ritchey won an honorable mention at the 2021 Michigan Press Photographer's Association Conference.
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It had been more than two weeks since Steve Wagester sprayed his kidney bean fields to be harvested, but consistent rain kept him from harvesting beans.
“You know I’m bored when I am helping gather rocks for rock gardens or splitting wood,” Wagester said. "I'd much rather be out in the field on the combine."
Wagester, a Remus resident, starts every day by sitting on a chair downstairs and lacing up his boots while dew still rests on the ground.
After graduating from Michigan State and working other jobs, Steve Wagester slowly began buying and inherited the farm from his father.
“My dad comes over every once in a while still to give me his two cents,” Steve said. “He can’t do much walking, so I think that it is his way of still being a part of things.”
Ever since he was young, Wagester has worked on a farm whether it was picking stones from tilled fields or milking cows. He even remembers a time that his parents thought he was lost in their cornfield and gathered a small search party to find him.
Wagester said that he spends his nights sometimes thinking about his planting schedule and what he’s going to farm next.
It is not only farming happening at the Wagester home though. Steve’s wife Kim and her mother, Ginger Vanderkelen, own a total of six horses. Kim rides in rodeos and attends horse shows on weekends, but because of COVID-19, has only been to a few rodeos in 2020.
The Wagesters are very much part of their respected communities. They cheer on the CMU’s Women's Basketball Team, provide living accommodations to students who may only have one semester left and maintain a working relationship with many area farms.
