It has often been said that there are no better people than those in the farming and ranching community, and a sale barn in Forest, Mississippi, may have proven just that.
Tadlock Stockyard posted their intentions to pass a hat around at their next weekly sale on Facebook to allow attendees to donate to Hurricane Helene relief efforts. A regular customer at Tadlock’s weekly cattle sale saw the post and offered to donate a Brangus heifer to the cause.
The sale, held on Monday, October 7, was one to remember. Our own Stevie White caught up with the Stockyard’s owner, David Tadlock to get the story.
“We sold that heifer eighteen different times,” Tadlock said. “The people that bought the heifer would say, ‘Resell the heifer.’ We also passed the hat around for everyone to throw cash in and when the dust settled, we gathered up $33,600 in about five minutes. That shows you that there are still some good people in the world!”
That last statement was proven further when additional donations began coming in bringing the total funds raised to $37,000 so far.
Tadlock emphasized that he doesn’t know anyone affected by the hurricanes. “They are Americans just like we are,” he stated proudly.
When he was planning the fundraiser, he hoped to raise $10,000 for the hurricane victims. He gave credit to the multiple people who purchased the heifer and put cash in the hat, beginning with the first one to win the bid of $3,000. The money was distributed to the Cajun Navy, Samaritan’s Purse, and the Graham Foundation in North Carolina.
Tadlock Stockyard made the final bid on the heifer. “We put my granddaughter’s brand on her, named her Helene, and turned her out in the pasture. She acts like Hurricane Helene because she’s not very happy right now.”
Of the agricultural community, he said, “We are all Americans, and we are all in this together. Farmers and ranchers are always there for each other and anyone else who is in trouble. It is great to be part of this family of ranchers who do things like this for their fellow Americans.”
While the recent Hurricanes haven’t impacted his business, he recalls when a hurricane did. “We are right in central Mississippi,” he said. “When Hurricane Katrina came through, we didn’t have electricity for four or five days and part of the barn blew away and some other things got torn up. Those storms don’t have any mercy on anybody. If you are in the way, you are just very unlucky to be there.”
Tadlock Stockyards is a multigenerational business celebrating its 100th year. David is the third generation of his family to run it, a task which he took on at 19 years old. It is reputed to be the largest sale in Mississippi, averaging from 1,400 to 3,000 head of cattle sold during each Monday’s sale.
“We are blessed to be surrounded by good people, good customers, good buyers, and good employees. That’s what makes our sale,” Tadlock said. “We are family-owned. My two daughters work with me here in the barn, and we just have a good time!”
He concluded by calling for the public to also donate to hurricane victims in whatever way they can.
