[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 1]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 285]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        HONORING FRANK WILBOURN

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, January 8, 2014

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a 
prodigal farmer, Frank Wilbourn.
  Mr. Wilbourn was born and raised in Marks, MS. He is 71 years old and 
has the ageless quality of someone with natural wisdom and a generous 
spirit. At age 22, he took the road north for the promise of better 
paying jobs. After returning home from 23 years of working in the 
steels mills of Milwaukee, he bought his father's farm and began life 
as one of the few local organic produce growers and the only local 
organic produce seller in the town. This land was purchased by his 
parents in 1939.
  Mr. Wilbourn spends part of his days below a shade tree besides the 
Fred's Dollars Store parking lot. His truck bed overflows with cabbage, 
string beans, bundles of kale, bags of okra, and baskets of tomatoes 
and peppers.
  Mr. Wilbourn grows all of the produce himself on a 5-acre fraction of 
his 100-acre farm that's nearby. On his property, two high tunnels 
stand in stark contrast to the surrounding straight lines of pines and 
the row crops of area farms.
  Mr. Wilbourn is a part of the Delta Fresh Family and was inspired by 
his wisdom and love for his community.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Mr. Frank 
Wilbourn for his dedication in being a remarkable farmer.

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