Write Offs

[Mike P]

Write Offs


We do our best to run the farm like a business. It just makes fiscal sense. Where others raise cattle, we raise whitetails. We also grow corn and beans like normal farms in the surrounding area and the profits from these efforts are used to offset the cost of our primary venture, whitetail bucks.

Like other farms, we make many decisions based upon depreciation schedules allowed for equipment that we invest in. We review all of our "costs" and have yearly business plans in place. In addition, two of the partners use the farm to entertain clients associated with their personal businesses and pay the farm fees for the privilege of doing so. They then "write off" the portion of those fees allowed by the IRS. The farm in turn "writes off" every expense allowed. These "write offs" are substantial and without them we would not be able to continue the operation of the farm. And we have just entered our tenth year of operation.

Eleven years ago four good hunting buddies hatched a plan one morning at a Bob Evans restaurant over breakfast. We all loved hunting whitetail bucks. Two of the friends were spending vast amounts of money on a yearly basis booking trips with outfitters in this pursuit. Just out of silliness that morning, we calculated the price per pound of the venison they harvested. It was staggering. And one of the buddies made the statement "At those prices we should get into that business." And I said "You know, we really should look into this." And we did.

The "business" that was conceived at that breakfast table has now survived for a decade. There were a lot of hard times over that decade where we questioned whether we made a bad decision that morning. It seemed like we were writing checks at an alarming rate over the years, and the numbers on those checks were also becoming larger. But gradually the pace slowed. The numbers grew smaller. We could see some light at the end of the tunnel. And we finally saw some fruits of our labor in the manner of vastly improved whitetail bucks. The "write offs" made it possible.

We have one "write off" the Internal Revenue Department never sees. Over the years, it has become our most important "write off." There just is no place to claim it on the very complicated IRS forms. It didn't seem like a big deal at the time. It didn't save us any money. In fact, it added a few bucks to the red ink. But over the years it proved to be the best business decision we ever made. Doc found our very first "write off" on his examining table the third year of the business. Her name was Jenny.

Jenny had been "written off." Lots of kids are. They come from broken homes and are shuffled back and forth between relatives like borrowed lawnmowers. She was twelve years old and for all intent and purpose, her next birthday would be her thirty-fifth. She had experienced more life altering events in her short twelve years of life then most of us will experience in a lifetime. Doc was looking at her broken rib. She said she fell while crossing a creek in the woods behind the house she was staying at. Doc had another opinion of what caused the injury. He called Children's Services, the government agency responsible for the well being of children within our county.

Two things came to light that day. Jenny was being physically abused at the home where she was "staying." And two, she really did love to walk in the woods behind that house. In fact, she escaped to it. It was her sanctuary. She was safe there. She preferred the animals in those woods over the animals she was living with in that home. And she would escape there every chance she could.

I remember the first time this introverted and cowering twelve year old girl walked though the front door of the farm house like it was just yesterday. You couldn't get her to say much. She did all of her communicating though Doc. She trusted Doc. I don't think she said more then five words to me that very first year. But it was evident she loved coming to the farm. And it was even more evident that she loved going out to the deer blinds.

Jenny is now a legal secretary and works for Becker the attorney. She is a vibrant young lady and is engaged to be married this summer. She is a frequent visitor to the farm, mostly when Becker has some of his corporate "big wig" clients out shooting clays or shooting doe's during the season. She runs between Becker and the clients at a frantic pace seeing that all have everything needed be it a soft drink or another box of red double X shot shells. And she will talk your ear off.

The year after Jenny first walked though that door I watched a fifteen year old boy name Dustin follow in her footsteps. Shrader brought him. His father took off when he was seven. He lived with his mom and bounced from apartment to apartment as she lost jobs and was unable to make rent payments. Dustin thought most of these hardships were his fault. They had to be. His mother said so, not in so many words mind you, but he got the meaning. He was not stupid. He was dealing with things no fifteen year old boy should ever have to deal with. Dustin graduated from the University of Cincinnati this past month. Shrader and his wife went to the graduation. His mother didn't. She wrote him off years ago.

The "write offs" started to increase. It was no longer one kid a year. It was two, then three. These "deductions" were everywhere; you didn't have to hunt for them. Most of them came from single parent households. Most were boys but we would find a girl now and again. I would like to tell you success stories about every one, but I cannot. Some didn't make it. We lost them back to the world that they came from. But the woods and the deer blinds took ownership of the majority. They became imprinted. They became hunters. And in doing so, they found a way out of their darkness.

We produce whitetail deer, and yes, in particular whitetail bucks. We also produce beans, corn and clover. It is what we set out to do. It is our business plan. It is what we envisioned that morning so long ago at breakfast. And in the beginning it was our reason for existence. But along the way a little girl named Jenny got in the way. She was a "write off" we didn't expect. And she showed us that the dividend we were chasing was not the true reward for our investment.

If you take the time to look around you, there are "write offs" every where. They are easy to find. I bet you know a kid living with a single parent and perhaps having a tough go of it. It is time for you to claim this "deduction." It is time for you to take this "write off." It is time for you to take this child hunting this fall.

You will not find a better return on your investment anywhere.

[Grizzly Adam]

If you take the time to look around you, there are "write offs" every where. They are easy to find. I bet you know a kid living with a single parent and perhaps having a tough go of it. It is time for you to claim this "deduction." It is time for you to take this "write off."

Good challenge, Mike. You're right about the dividends paid, too.

I work with "written off" people (and children too) most every day.

And I praise God for the changes I've seen in many of them.

Indeed, it isn't really "work" to help the "written-off" of society.

It's my privilege.

[mikej]

well said mike those are great stories

[B-Logger]

Well said. Well done. Thank you Mike.

[SPITFIRE]

A clear understanding of a person with a GOOD heart. Thank you Mike.

[awshucks]

Great story about great people, Mike. My hat is off to you and yours.

[VixChix]

Really truly awesome.
I like you even more now, Mike.
(I know, I know... you didn't think that was possible, did you? )

[Pydpiper]

Great read Mike!

[Kelley]

Way to go Mike and Pardners. The world needs more like you 4.
Kelley

[Mike P]

Grizz was the first to respond. I expect that. And he read the words correctly. He got the message.

It is clear to me from the responses that follow grizz that this write did not do what I intended it to do. I failed with this piece.

The message was really not about me or the partners. Sure I told you what we do, but only as an example. I was trying to write a piece that would make you want to act, make you want to find a kid and take them hunting. I wanted you to actually think about taking one of these "written off" kids out into the woods.

I wanted you to see the possibilities from doing this. I wanted to share with you the joy associated with seeing a kid "make it" even though the deck was stacked against them.

I see now that the piece came off as a story about the partners and the farm. And that was the furthest from my intention.

Sometimes the pieces I write do not convey the message I intended.

This would appear to be one.

[raydaughety]

I understand what your saying. Mike, you have a reputation here on the Excalibur forum of being kind, unselfish and a very generous man so when we hear of something that you have done to help your fellow man, we are kinda used to it and tend to think more about what you have done for others and for me, I just missed the message this time. Sorry .

[mikej]

i missed that one too

[saxman]

great read Mike.
It is the very reason I changed my tag line.
Erica and I wet a line this afternoon.
She used my ultra lite to catch this little bass in our neighborhood pond.

[Pydpiper]

Your message was clear Mike, and the actions are noble.
I started my business for the sole purpose of dedicating time for my family, I didn't want a building with hours and staff who were dependant. My goal was to be home to put my kids on the bus in the morning and be there when they got back off. I am certainly not the president of a fortune 500 company, but spending the family time I do around here has far greater rewards.
I see write offs every day, they often blend in, but it doesn't take long to pick them out. I wish I could do more. My son at 4 came up with the idea of supplying boots and gloves for those who need them, so we spend a fair amount of time collecting and distributing them when and where we can. People in need are not always the same ones who have been written off, but every bit counts.
Good on ya Mike.

[Mike P]

It is the very reason I changed my tag line.

Sax, your tag line is my favorite of all the tags here on the forum.