From the Desk of the Chief Ice Cream Dipper

We pretty much all get it.  When we buy local, we know our dollars stay more local.  That supports more jobs, more taxes paid locally, more economic activity stays local instead of going somewhere else.  That's a good thing.  It makes sense.  It's what we do when we can.

Today's economic conditions make buying local more important than ever.  We also all know that buying local just to buy local doesn't get it.  The business you buy from still has to give you value -- at the end of the day, you have to get a good deal for your money or you won't buy there again -- local or not.  That's just the way it works.  That's what makes America great and what makes it work -- every business has the opportunity to succeed and has the opportunity to fail.  If we're local, we want a chance from our local Customers -- we know we don't have the right to their business -- but we hope we get the opportunity to earn their business.

I was reviewing what Young's buys -- and who we buy from -- as I was looking over our 2008 numbers.  All things being equal, Young's has always chose to buy local.  But I'd never thought of looking at how much we buy local.  I knew our purchases are mostly local, but I was really amazed at how local.  I define local as within 60 miles of Young's.  Almost 90% of all purchases Young's made in 2008 were from local companies -- and more than 70% of that was from companies within 25 miles.  This includes good and services. 

Young's will continue to buy local.  We know that 80% or more of our business comes from local Customers -- it just makes good economic sense for us to support the business.

Below is a list of local businesses we buy from (in no particular order) -- and this list is not all of them -- I apologize to any I missed in making my list!  Yes, some of this list includes the local branch of a national or even international business -- but they all have local employees and businesses that pay taxes -- and I hope they all like ice cream and know of a good place to visit to get a dip or two of their favorite flavor!

I-Supply Company
Reiter Dairy
Hoskett Veterinary Service
Southwest Landmark
Smith's Rolloff Service
A&B Asphalt
Gordon Food Service
A-C Service
Par Striping
Montgomery Insurance
Meadowview Growers
All-Phase Electric
Bowman & Landess Turkeys
Brown Publishing
Maine's Towing
Mader Electric
Spradlin Bros Welding
Sysco Foods
Triec Electric
Bryce Hill
CED Electric
Catanzaro & Sons Produce
Champaign Excavating
Clark County Glass
Mad River Topsoil
Mike-Sells
Lavy Enterprises
Kaiser Fruit Farm
KW Burris
Janeco Janitor Supplies
Instantwhip Dayton
Home City Tent
Cox Ohio
Dayton Daily News
Custom Tire
Do It Best Harware
Holmes Printing
W.R Hackett Produce
Delille Oxygen
Dooley Septic Pro
Economy Linen
Ehman's Garage
Electric Eel
Ellenbee-Leggett
Klosterman's Bakery
Enting Water Conditioning
Ertel Publishing
Folck's Country Cuts
Pepsi-Cola Bottling
Phares Pumps
RE Skillings
Blessing Water
Remington Steel
Rieck Mechanical Services
Schockman Lumber
Sherriff-Goslin Roofing
Farm Credit Services
WBZI Radio
Waterways & Pathways
White Glove Cleaning'
Woeber's Mustard
Yellow Springs News
YMCA-Springfield
Carl's Mustard
Coca-Cola
Berner Screen Print
Security National Bank

Buy local when you can.  It helps all of us.

 Dan Young

 

Posted by Dan Young at 09:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

As you know we are a farm.  Many folks think that means we need cats.  I want to tell you we have enough cats, already! 

Unfortunately, this time of year, every year, many cats are dropped off at our farm.  Right now, the cats outnumber the cows!  We feed them and care for them in our barn and show them where the food is and keep them away from the restaurant -- cats wandering around the restaurant is not a good thing on most days.

 I suggest if you have cats you do not want or can no longer care for, and can't find a good home for them, then please take them to your local Humane Society or other animal shelter.  Better yet -- please spay and neuter your cats (and dogs) to help reduce the problem in the future.    Cat overpopulation is a serious problem -- it leads to lots of stray/feral cats and leads to animal hoarding in some cases.   I am a member of our local board of health and we have dealt with a few cases involving cat hoarding, and it's not pretty.

Read more at the Humane Society's website at http://www.hsus.org/pets/issues_affecting_our_pets/pet_overpopulation_and_ownership_statistics/

 Thanks for listening (or is that thanks for reading?).

 Dan

 

Posted by Dan Young at 08:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Like most folks, we got Ike'd.  Lots of small damage to trees, missing shingles and some driving range netting.  The biggest loss was the metal roof on The Golden Jersey Inn that blew off.  Who ever knew we had to worry about that kind of wind from a hurricane in Ohio! Our new roof should be up in a cew days -- not metal this time!

The good news for us was we only lost power for about 3 1/2 hours, so no losses on refrigerated foods, freezers, etc.  We only shut down Sunday evening and reopened 6 am Monday.   I know we were more fortunate than many in our immediate area.  I know I certainly hope we have no repeats of that for the next 100 years!

Posted by Dan Young at 11:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I am happy to report the results of the 2008 Young's Charity Bike Tour.  On September 16, 2008 we presented each of the four charities an $18,000 check to be used for their causes, for a total of $72,000 raised this year!  That's an almost 40% increase from 2007.

The committee, volunteers and sponsors work and plan and give throughout the year to make this ride happen.  We all have fun, but always remember the main purpose of the ride is to raise fund for wothwhile organizations than work to benefit the lives of Miami Valley residents.

 The four charities we supported this year are The Alzheimer's Association, The Wellness Connection, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and Inited Rehabilitation Services (URS).

Thanks to all who help create and run this ride.  They all are truly one of the best groups of people I know.

Planning for the Seventh Young's Charity Bike Tour is already underway.  Mark your calendars for July 25 & 26, 2009.

Posted by Dan Young at 11:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Sixth Annual Young's Ice Cream Charity Bike is now history.  Over 200 bikers, 40 volunteers and over 20 sponsors gave their time, resources and money to create the best supported bicycle ride in this part of Ohio!

We ride to support the local chapters of our bike ride charities -- The Alzheimer's Association, United Rehabilitation Services, The Wellness Connection and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. 

This year we created a new route that went from Young's Jersey Dairy in Yellow Springs to Ohio Northern University in Ada, Ohio -- about 83 miles.  Most of the riders stayed in Ohio Northern University's fantastic air conditioned dorms/apartments overnight and rode back to Young's on Sunday.

We had five rest stops along the way, and Young's provided lunch both days on the route -- and ice cream at both ends of the ride on both days.

This ride also had one day, shorter mileage options for those who don't have the desire to ride that far!

Each rider pledges to get donations or makes the donation themselves to support the charities.  After expenses (insurance, brochure printing, dorm charges and dinner and breakfast at the University) the funds raised are split among the four charities.  Each charity supplies volunteers to support rest stops, check in duties, and other helpful chores.

The ride itself is supported by ham radio operators, two bike repairs shops, motorcycles, and vehicles to pick up folks with broken bikes or who need assistance for part of the ride.

Last year we were able to distribute over $52,000 to the charities.  We will finish collecting all pledges over the next month or so, but I feel confident we will beat that number for the 2008 ride.

Thanks to all who were part of this ride.  You are what makes it fun and successful.  We are already planning on the 2009 edition of the ride -- stay tuned for more details -- but keep the July 25 & 26, 2009 open on your calendar! 

 

Posted by Dan Young at 08:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

As we are just getting into spring and warm weather, the busy season for Young's is just around the corner. We are happy to see the sun shine -- ice cream sales like warm weather! I don't need to tell you that there is a more than normal amount of uncertainty with a lot of things that affect us at Young's and you, our valued Guests. The price of oil -- with gas prices so high, how is that going to affect visits to Young's this year?

On the one hand, it's more expensive to get in your car and drive 20 or 30 miles to get to our farm. On the other hand, we are a lot closer and cheaper to visit than many of the alternatives, like Kings Island or Cedar's Point, or a Reds game, for example. Only time will tell.

Our Guests can be assured we are focused on making your trip to Young's a worthwhile experience. We hire, train and coach the ways to make each Guest visit a good experience. I know we are not perfect and we don't always deliver, but we always strive to make your visit fun and enjoyable -- worth your money, time and gas! The price of oil has affected so many things. Last year our packaging (paper, plastic, or other) went up 12-20%). I don't need to tell many of you how the cost of dairy, eggs, sugar and flour have increased.

Most of this can be attributed to the use of so much corn to make ethanol. I don't know what the long term solutions are to the energy crisis, but I don't think the idea of using corn is a sustainable idea. It may be a short term fix, but the worldwide disruption in food prices caused by this just isn't going to work in the future. We are at work inventing new things to do at Young's this year (more on that in another posting). We are also replacing some old floors and wallpaper at the Dairy Store, getting some new furniture in and repairing a major part of our parking lot. Kinda boring stuff, but it's a part of everyday business and taking care of our Guests. Take care -- I hope to see you soon at Young's. Thanks for your business. Dan

Posted by Dan Young at 06:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)