WHA - Built on its Membership As part of our anniversary celebration we are featuring some of our long-time members and longest running prefixes. est. 1890
The following articles are reprinted with permission from the October 2014 issue of Holstein World.
William Hageman Sr., Hagemans Holsteins, Fond du Lac
For long time Registered Holstein breeder William Hageman, Sr. of Fond du Lac County, the most rewarding part of being involved in this industry for the past 60 years is the quality of animals and the genuine people in the business. Those aspects combined with the opportunity to become involved, serve in various capacities and help others have been Hageman’s motivation. “My interest for the Registered Holstein cow developed by being exposed to showing through 4-H and the Junior Holstein Association,” Hageman says. “We had a grade herd, but my father valued my interest for registered animals and he allowed me to start purchasing registered cattle to add to our herd.” After attending the UW-Madison Farm and Industry Short Course, Hageman purchased Diego Carburke Eve for $400, a cow that would have an extreme impact on his herd. She went on to be classified VG-88 and made over 800-lbs. fat. Under the suggestion of Merle Howard, who saw Eve while classifying, Bill mated her to Ravenbrook Ideal. She was also mated to Senator, Hagemans Tempo and Apache. All together, Eve’s legacy in the herd lived on through many generations and five of her progeny earned Gold Medal Dam honors. When purchasing cattle, Hageman paid close attention to pedigrees. “I wanted to find cattle that would last in our herd and transmit well, so I looked for depth of pedigree,” he says. “This spurred me to add the Roxy influence to our herd among other strong maternal and paternal lines.” Hageman developed his herd under the Marhabil prefix until he and his wife, Saloah, married in 1960. They then established the Hagemans prefix for their 45-cow herd. Their prefix produced standouts like Hagemans Senator Eva (VG-86 GMD), from the aforementioned Eve family, and Hagemans Tempo (EX-90 GM), a Harborcrest Sunshine son of Hagemans Captain Tidy (EX-92). The Hagemans dispersed their herd in 1992 and the power of those strong families still lives on through descendents in the industry. Their son, William Jr., is still actively involved in the industry, where he works at Semex as USA Genetics Manager. On the people side of the industry, Hageman is quick to credit Eugene Nelson of Gray-View Farms with supporting and encouraging him. Namely, Nelson approached him and asked him to help with their show string at various events including the State Fair, Waterloo shows and the International at Chicago. It was through this work that he developed his passion for strong cow families, one that he still exudes today. “The best part of this industry is the desire that other breeders have to help those who want to get started,” he states. “Working with Gene and outstanding brood cattle like B D Crissy and Skyanne was an experience that sparked my love for the Holstein cow and strong pedigrees.” Throughout the years, Hageman served on his local board of directors and the state board of directors, where he was president in 1988. He was also honored to represent Wisconsin as a Delegate to the National Holstein Convention. In 1960, he was the recipient of the Wisconsin Outstanding Holstein Boy Award and went on to be runner-up on the National level. He had many class winners at the 18–wisconsin HOLSTEIN news/May 2015
local District Show and bred multiple All-Wisconsin winners. Hageman was recognized in 1989 with the WHA Distinguished Dairy Breeder Award for his accomplishments and Hagemans Tempo was honored as the Wisconsin Holstein Association “Wall of Fame” bull in 2007. Today, he can still be found serving on the ethics committee, standing in the show ring make-up area at World Dairy Expo where he monitors top line hair length on all animals entering the ring. “This has truly been a great experience for me as it exposes me to some of the greatest people in the industry - people that I respect and enjoy working with,” he says. “Plus, I get to put my hands on all the champions of the dairy breeders, something not too many get to enjoy.” Individuals like Nelson served as mentors for Hageman and now he prides himself in serving in this role for others. He cites the encouragement from others as his greatest motivator and his reason for encouraging younger generations to stay involved in the industry. For him, the opportunity to serve and help others has become very gratifying and he strives to influence people in a positive way. Here is the advice he offers to those interested in the business. “Draw up your plans and goals and then find someone who has been successful in that area to mentor you on how best to achieve those goals. Always consider new developments, but don’t defer from your plan. While there will always be disappointments, focus on the good.”
Maurice Cooper, Moss Oak Farm, DeForest
As an 85-year-old dairyman who raised six children on their family farm in DeForest, Maurice Cooper, has many fond memories of being involved in this business. Cooper was raised on a Registered Holstein farm in Jefferson County. “When I was in high school, I couldn’t wait to get home and get out to the barn,” he says. “I knew I wanted to farm and so I attended the University of Wisconsin Farm and Industry Short Course, where I met my wife, Geri, and the rest is kind of history.” They were married in 1950 and after one year of working at the infamous Pabst Farms, the newlyweds moved to Geri’s home farm in DeForest. In 1960, they purchased that farm. Geri’s father, Louis Sommer, had 27 grade animals at the time and was not interested in Registered Holsteins. So, when they made the move with 10 cows of their own, the six registered animals remained in his name and carried his “Moss Oak” prefix. That prefix and his dream of developing a solid Registered Holstein herd now lives on through the next generation of Coopers, namely his eldest son, William, and his family. Cooper refers to the “Kitten” cow family as one of the favorites he developed through the years. “When I was out working the Showcase sale and traveling with Nelson Rehder, I had the opportunity to visit another farm and there I found Borkdale Dandy Kay. We brought her home and she ended up being an EX-93 cow and produced our first Junior All-American nominee, Moss Oak T T Kitten (EX-93),” Cooper says. Today the herd is home to 135 Registered Holsteins, with 60 of them being milk cows. William has taken over the day-to-day operation of the herd and he has four daughters who have also taken a keen