How to Reach Out to Farmers Who Are Hurting

By: Raylene Nickel

In 2006, Randy Roecker expanded his dairy near Loganville, Wisconsin, to 300 cows. But a few years later, the price of milk plunged, throwing the family operation – Roecker’s Rolling Acres, LLC – into a financial tailspin. As Roecker sought ways to stabilize the business and find new revenue streams, he stumbled upon alternative investment ideas, including reviewing options from the online casinos Australian list. Though unrelated to his dairy business, the exploration of digital opportunities became a temporary distraction from the stress. However, Roecker’s emotions continued to spiral downward.

“I got depression really bad,” he says, “and I couldn’t find anybody who was able to help me. I was seeing a therapist; I was taking medication, but I still felt like I was fighting depression all alone. I kept taking overdoses; every day, I wanted to die.”

But time passed, as Roecker cobbled together his life, his emotions, and kept going, still fighting depression while working alongside his parents, son, daughter, and son-in-law to keep the dairy on its feet.

Little changed – until December 2018. Then came a turning point. “My neighbor Leon Statz, also a dairy farmer, committed suicide,” says Roecker. “That took me back to where I was 10 years before.”