FARM DREAMS: One last look at the Klesick family of Stanwood
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Dan Bates / The Herald
Wearing dresses as though from a different era, Madeleine (top) and Maleah climb in their favorite tree outside the old farmhouse at the Klesick farm in May.
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Dan Bates/The Herald
Tristan Klesick takes a moment for himself while letting his draft horses rest. He has been weeding gardens with the century-old John Deere weeder that Aaron restored earlier in the spring.
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Dan Bates/The Herald
While waiting to help their dad with spring planting of lettuce and onions, Andrew, Maleah, Madeleine and Alaina play on the "giant marshmallows," which are actually large bales of grass cut the day before. Here, Alaina helps Andrew climb to the upper bales.
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Dan Bates/The Herald
RIGHT: Emily takes Maleah (left) and Madeleine out to the far pasture to see Miss Moo and her newborn baby calf on Aug. 20.
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Dan Bates / The Herald
Farm dreams turn to hoop dreams at the Klesick Farm, where a basketball hoop gets routine use by all members of the family big enough or brave enough to go up against Tristan.
In today's world, however, they capture our attention because they live true to their values. They are not part of today's television culture. They talk. They read. They make music and sing. They work -- boy, do they work!
They play. And they pray.
Farm Dreams, the photo-story, may appear to come to an end here, with these last images. However, the real farm dreams will continue forever in the lives of these wonderful kids and their parents, Joelle and Tristan.
And there may be a few new farm dreams born from the Klesicks' unselfish sharing of their stories.
It may be just as Tristan once said: "There are a lot of people out there who don't know, yet, that they're farmers."
Story tags »
• Human Interest • Stanwood • Agriculture • FamilyThe series
Farm Dreams is the story of the Klesick family: Tristan and Joelle and their eight children, Micah, 17, Emily, 15, Aaron, 14, Alaina, 12, Andrew, 10, Madeleine (Maddy), 7, Maleah (Mimi), 4 and Stephen, 1. Herald photographer Dan Bates began following the family in February this year, talking, observing and taking pictures to create an occasional series of photo stories and Web galleries. To see the earlier seven chapters, go to heraldnet.com and search for Farm Dreams. This and a heraldnet.com gallery include some previously unseen photos to conclude the project.
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