[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 116 (Thursday, July 11, 2019)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E899]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      HONORING WESTERN FARM CENTER

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                           HON. MIKE THOMPSON

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 11, 2019

  Mr. THOMPSON of California. Madam Speaker, I rise today with the 
Honorable Jared Huffman, to recognize Western Farm Center as the 
recipient of the Sonoma County Farm Bureau's Friend of the Farm Bureau 
award. For 52 years Western Farm Center has been the premier feed 
stores that serves farms in the Santa Rosa area.
  Western Farm Center was founded by brothers Larry and Lou Bertolini 
in 1967. The store is currently owned and operated by Lou's daughter 
Maria Bertolini Frampton and her husband Trevor Frampton, who is the 
general manager of the store. Western Farm Center has been a staple in 
Sonoma County for decades. The store provides essential feed, seed, and 
supplies to the surrounding rural community, as well as exceptional 
customer service.
  For more than thirty years, Western Farm Center has worked alongside 
the Sonoma County Farm Bureau to bridge the rural and urban gap by 
bringing chicks and ducklings to the Farm Bureau's Ag Days, a 
celebration that introduces city children to the wonders of the farm 
community. Western Farm Center has provided straw and additional 
resources for other events held by the Sonoma County Farm Bureau.
  Western Farm Center is known for being run by people who are generous 
and involved in our community. They frequently provide food and other 
supplies to Pony Express, All Aboard Dog Rescue, Sonoma County Animal 
Services, and Dogwood Animal Rescue. Western Farm Center played a large 
role in the days and weeks following the October 2017 wildfires. Along 
with their vendors, the store provided pet food, hay, and grain for 
cats, dogs, and horses that had been left homeless by the fires.
  Madam Speaker, Western Farm Center is an important business in our 
community and has been aptly honored with the Sonoma County Farm 
Bureau's Friend of the Farm Bureau award. It is therefore fitting and 
proper that we honor the store and its owners here today.

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