Leaches Honored with Max Gordon Award
Rob and Lisa Leach of Linwood, Kan., have been named the Max Gordon Recognition Award recipients for 2023. The two were honored at a ceremony held during the National Jersey Jug Futurity in Louisville, Ky., on November 5.
The Leaches operate Lin-Crest Farm, a mixed herd of Registered Jerseys and Holsteins, with their daughters, Taylor, Erin and Sophie.
The Max Gordon Recognition Award is given annually to an exhibitor who possesses the five key elements for which the award’s namesake stood: sportsmanship, ethics, professionalism, ability and promotion of the Jersey cow. Recipients are chosen by a committee of individuals who have previously received the Max Gordon Recognition Award.
It is fitting to honor Rob and Lisa as a couple as the two are inseparable. They have built a business in the dairy industry from the ground up together, raised a family together, and, quite literally, weathered storms together. The Leaches are the second couple to receive the award, following in the footsteps of Jeff and Alta Mae Core of Salvisa, Ky., who received the award in 2014.
Along with the words used to describe recipients of the Max Gordon Recognition Award are a heap of other adornments for the Leaches—inspiring, honest, dedicated, resilient, and humble. With positive demeanors and quick smiles, Rob and Lisa can instantly make anyone feel comfortable and welcome. As they have grown their business, they have grown a list of friends in dairy circles and their local community that is too numerous to count.
But they have also earned the respect of their peers for another characteristic—the ability to breed and develop beautiful cows of all colors. Though they have had their share of success with their Holsteins, their Jersey herd has put them on the map.
Since purchasing their first brown cow two decades ago, the Leaches have bred many Excellent cows and earned their share of hardware on the tanbark trail. Three matriarchs have been appraised Excellent-95%, including the highest appraised cow in the herd today, LC Success Abilene. Two other cows in the 33-cow Jersey herd are Excellent-93%: LC Premier Shandy and Ho-Crawf Andreas Joplin. Another 14 are Excellent and 16 are Very Good. The Lin-Crest herd has an average final score of 88.8%.
In the All American Junior Jersey Show, the Leaches have exhibited two Grand Champions, a Reserve Grand Champion, a Junior Champion, a Reserve Junior Champion, three Overall Premier Performance Winners, 11 Junior All Americans, and three Reserve Junior All Americans. In the National Jersey Jug Futurity, Erin and Sophie were partners of the winner for 2019. Most of these animals are homebred.
Both Rob and Lisa grew up on multi-generation Holstein dairies—he on their present farm in Kansas and she in western Pennsylvania. After they began dating, they maintained a long-distance relationship for several years. Their venues were cow shows and other dairy events. Though they lived on the road, travel was less weary because they both loved what they were doing. He was a truck driver, and she was a photographer.
Rob and Lisa married in 1990 and moved to his home farm in Linwood. There they raised three daughters and nurtured a passion for the dairy industry in each. All three girls participated in national Jersey youth programs and were active cow advocates.
Taylor was crowned National Jersey Queen in 2014 and is now a digital content producer and media analyst for Farm Journal. Erin placed seventh in the 2020 National Jersey Youth Achievement Contest. She has been a classifier for Holstein Association USA and is now a dairy sales representative in Tillamook, Ore. Both Taylor and Erin are graduates of Jersey Youth Academy. Sophie is a freshman at Kaskaskia Community College studying ag business and dairy science, with plans to transfer to the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. She recently showed Lin-Max Beemer Sweet Pea to Grand Champion honors at the International Junior Holstein Show in October and LC Reckless Armadillo to Intermediate Champion honors at the All American Junior Jersey Show in November. All three girls received scholarships from the national Jersey organizations.
One word in particular—resilience—may be the word of which the Leaches are most closely aligned. Resilience was played out in spades in the aftermath of an EF4 tornado that leveled the farm in May 2019. Though most would have given up, the Leaches vowed, “We will go out on our terms, not Mother Nature’s.”
It was their friendships and character as salt-of-the-earth people that proved to be allies in their battle to be “Stronger than the Storm.” Within hours of the incident, people arrived at the farm in droves to show their support and help wherever they could. Others contributed to the cause financially and with other acts of service. The Leaches estimated that 100 volunteers a day showed up for 3-6 weeks after the storm to drain seven ponds, hand-pick wire and nails, and haul the trash.
The house built in 1884 was damaged but could be repaired. The freestall barn, parlor, calf barn, shop, silos and other structures were a total loss, along with 20 cows. Though rebuilding is always a challenge, the Leaches faced another hurdle just as they began to rebuild: COVID-19. The cost of building supplies escalated, and availability plummeted. The Leaches and their friends wound up rebuilding most of the structures themselves along with four miles of fencing. A commodity shed was the first structure to arise from the ashes. The cows were moved into a new pack barn in December 2021 and milk is now being shipped to DFA.
Today there is some sense of normalcy on the farm located just 30 miles southwest of the heart of Kansas City. The Leaches continue to operate their business with a guiding principle that embraces the three vital elements in their lives: “Great Family, Great Friends, Great Cows.”
Previous winners of the Max Gordon Recognition Award include Michael Heath, Westminster, Md. (2022)*; Ted DeMent, Kenney, Ill. (2021); Donna Greiwe, Sidney, Ohio (2020); Steve Bachelor, Angola, Ind. (2019)*; Kevin Williams, McConnelsville, Ohio (2018); Greg Bourne, Ansonia, Ohio (2017); Roger Riebe, Cumberland, Wis. (2016); Steve White, New Castle, Ind. (2015); Jeff and Alta Mae Core, Salvisa, Ky. (2014); Gene “Bambi” Henderson, Manchester, Iowa (2013); Norman Nabholz, West Union, Iowa (2012); George Barlass, Janesville, Wis. (2011)*, Jim VanBuskirk, Mich. (2010)*; Brian Sayles, Ont. (2009); Mike Stiles, Va. (2008); Harry Mykrantz, Ohio (2007)*; Ronnie Rider, Ky. (2006); Chuck Myers, Ohio (2005)*; Charles Luchsinger, N.Y. (2004); and Ron Mosser, Ind. (2003). *deceased
