The Morris/Arla Johnson Story... By Morris Johnson

I was born to Gerda and Folke Johnson in 1955. Outside of some hijinks in Grade 8 at the Lake

Alma School... which included explosive chemistry in the lab and playing (hookey) whist by candlelight in the crawlspace under the cement floor structures of the school I had uneventful school years. I started farming with my dad upon completing high school in 1973 and on my own in 1980.

In 1978 Folke accompanied by his brother Pete made a trip back to the "old country" Sweden and Norway to see their relatives and visit the tree farm my grandfather Axel's brothers families owned until the 1970's.

Gerda was an avid contributor to open line radio. Lorne Harasen and Sherve Shragg came to expect her commentary on farm life, the environment, opera and classical music. She was an art patron of Walter Suchowolec , and other local painters during the 1980's.

I met my future wife, Arla Paul, daughter of Clara and Keith Paul of Weyburn, in August 1979. Arla attended U of S in Saskatoon , studying to be a teacher during the 1979-80 school year. Prior to this, she had a year of degree Agriculture. We wed July 26,1980.

Folke and Gerda retired to Weyburn in May 1980, where they resided until Folke and Gerda passed away May,1981 and December 1991 respectively , both at about 76 years of age.

1985 and 1988 were as close as we ever wanted to come to being part of a re-enactment of the 1930's. No rain for months followed by ravenous grasshoppers. Memorable moments, being able to walk about in early February in running shoes in above freezing weather with no snow in sight ,with crunchy dry old grass under foot and bits of new green grass peeking out (when ordinarily temperatures should be dipping to the minus 40 mark ) ... pictures of gardens covered by fully grown grasshoppers are pretty but grim reminders of the results of the warm dry "Omega block" brought by "El Nino".

I raised "Beefalo" cattle and experimented with bison and bison cross-breeds .from 1975-85. In 1977 I AI bred beef cows using 5/8 bison semen which originated in Texas. It had been purchased by a Wyoming rancher who smuggled it up to a mutual friend at Red Deer , Alberta. This friend "Rudy", then sold some of this to me. This then became the source of most of our high bison percentage crossbreds. It was difficult to keep these independent animals in ordinary cow fences especially when the grass became scarce or the neighboring cows were more interesting than the ones at home so the Bison Hybrids were sold. There were some interesting times, not all fun for both ourselves or neighbors. One June 1978 day my bison bull hopped over the fence from our pasture and into a nearby pasture to be with the cow herd of Kirk Torkelson ... and then slipped back to where he came from. Only the next spring when an odd looking calf was born in a snow storm did anyone realize a half bison was the result of that past June. Nearly a year later it made some of the best steak Kirk and Ila have had,...or so we were later told.

I served on the Board of Directors of a USA breeder's organization Bison-Hybrid International (BHIA) from 1978-1980. There were several good visits with Jim and Lydia Pattyson in Regina, prior to 6AM flights to meetings during the stock show in Denver. BHIA was composed of breeders of many distinctly different experimental types of bison/bovine crossbreds.

Myself, together with Harold Oderman of H2O Beefalo of Belfield , North Dakota displayed Bison-Hybrids and Beefalo at the Agribition in Regina in 1978 and 1979. Highlights of 1979 Agribition.. My culinary curiosity ... if you eat food you have never had before you might not know if it's gone bad or not by the flavor ... there was a morning in the Plains hospital with food poisoning after the escargot (snails) for supper the night before. Luckily all the others around the table wouldn't touch any so were spared the damage. Then there was the sight unseen booking of the last available motel rooms only 3 months before Agribition. Lets put it this way, that Agribition may have been the only time that year that a "no vacancy" sign was ever up at the "Carousel". Everyone found light bulbs to be an option , supplied only after the first night's occupancy. When we drove by the place a year later the motel was gone and all that remained was a vacant lot. It wasn't a bad experience since as Exhibitors at Agribition we were not there to kick back in our room and have a holiday and only needed to come back to sleep anyway, but it was a little embarrassing to explain to friends from the USA why they were paying top dollar for less than prime accommodation. Then there was the California guest who commented how cold it was... it was explained that shirt sleeve weather in Regina on December 01, 1979 was usually 70 fahrenheit degrees colder.

I was in Denver during the founding Meeting and sale of the American Bison Association in 1978. It too was a unique organization composed of ranchers, business people, hobbiests and

professionals with investments in their own or others bison operations.

During 1981, Arla and I decided to canvass bison owners we knew and asked for names of any other breeders. We found over 75 Canadian Breeders. Then together with Gordon Sherman of Cardston Alberta , who made arrangements for the convention site, we invited both presenters and an audience to a breeders seminar and organizational meeting.. When we left for Lethbridge, Alberta with baby Erin accompanying in her basket we knew we had promised the 54 paid registrants that the speakers were coming and vice versa. When we arrived , we found 104 registrants and a very successful founding convention. I was elected the founding president of the "Canadian Bison Association March 1992. Together with Richard Bintner of Chagoness, Sask. I attended Agribition committee meetings and organized the first ever bison sale at the 1982 Canadian Western Agribition. Unlike the Denver events which use an old stockyard complex, Agribition was a far riskier undertaking . A lot of people took a chance that we wouldn't cause a wreck, and with good luck we didn't disappoint them. I handed the reigns over to Pierre Belanger at Earlton Ontario in March 83. The bison business grew but not until the 90's did it become highly profitable. As late as 1990 I sat down to dinner with a banker from the Royal Bank and a farmer/farm debt councillor at a Flax Council meeting in Winnipeg. The topic of conversation between the other two was about a certain unfortunate farmer who had become financial "roadkill" attempting to make a business out of raising bison.

Arla helped me lead the Borderview 4-H club in 1980-81. I helped organize the Borderview Soil Conservation Cooperative in the early 80's. Kirk Torkelson and I accompanied soil conservation bus tours of what turned out to be mostly provincial and federal employees. We enjoyed everyone's company and brought back information, pictures and video. I sought out new crops from both Canada and other countries to try out including millet, vetch, lupin medic, fenugreek, Winter triticale. . Many didn't do well in our area. Interestingly enough when one did , the first comment from some was "will it become a weed"...remember the "black medic"?

Some of Arla's activities from 1882 to 1995 ....Petit-point , Hardanger , judging at the Minton-
Gladmar Fall fair, working with and leading the local girl guide club, serving in most of the capacities associated with the Lake Alma Royal Purple including Honored Royal Lady 1983-85 and acting with the "Twilight Star Theater" troupe.

In 1990 we took another turn at diversification when we incorporated MegaO Pedigree Products Ltd. We developed and marketed a trial run of a specialty flax (Omega 3) birdseed.

We learned that, unlike the 80 acres of gravel Arla sold to Larsen Construction in December 1998 not all new ventures sell themselves.

Education has always been an important issue in our lives. From 1994-1997 I served on the Lake Alma School board. Arla was employed at Gladmar Regional School as a special Education aide from 1991-94 and as school secretary from 94-98. I never attended post secondary education being self taught in a lot of areas.

Arla was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 1989 and has been since 1997 been unable to walk as a result. Knowing how to find and apply information to help treat Arla's Multiple Sclerosis has been invaluable. Arla uses several drugs used almost nowhere else. " If it works on the lab rats or in research trials , it must be worth consideration for us to try "is not exactly the motto but I'm sure many think it is . I was a board member of the Saskatchewan Division of the Canadian Multiple Sclerosis Society in 1998. Arla has been a board member of the Weyburn Chapter of the Saskatchewan Division of the MS Society since 1997.

As a result of 25 years exposure to massive quantities of medical information it has became evident that Medicinal Foods( foods that work together with or take the place of drugs) might be to the farmers of the late 90's and beyond much like bison in the late 80's , an business idea whose time is just around the corner.

Arla incorporated a new company Extropian Agroforestry Ventures (EAV) in April 1999 and hired me to create nutraceuticals based upon Organic crops and other things such as buffaloberry trees which we either already have or can grow.. Arla bought a purchase option on the Lake Alma School and other properties and at the time of this writing we have plans to match make EAV with several other complementary nutraceutical businesses to use the Lake Alma School as an Ag- Value-added business startup "incubator. Only time will tell if this venture is "to be or not to be " like the bison breeder the 2 aformentioned fellows were making dinner chit-chat about or mushroom like the Canadian Bison Association.

We have three children , Erin Michelle, born Dec. 11, 1981, Leah Maureen, born Oct. 31,1984, and Gregory Dale born May 21, 1987.

Erin is presently attending southeast community college taking office education/computers and is on the list for enrollment at SIAST-Regina in the Multi/New Media Communications program. Erin appears to be headed towards a career in electronic business, marketing or communication. Leah and Greg are still at home taking high school at Gladmar.