A small cherry farm in Michigan becomes the backdrop for a story about innovation, resilience, and legacy. While the pressures of modern agriculture continue to grow, one family farmer finds a way to move forward without letting go of what came before.

In this episode, Kim sits down with Haley to talk about the real people behind rural farming. They reflect on the challenges facing small farms today, what it means to innovate without new machinery, and how storytelling helps connect everyday power to the lives it supports.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• How one farmer reimagined his tools to stay competitive
• Why cherry farming demands creativity and care
• What Cummins makes possible for people working on the edge of change

Articles

For this episode, we’re going to continue highlighting Haley’s passion for storytelling. Check out some of her latest articles below to learn something unexpected.

• The Keeper. The Preserver. The Archivist.
• The delicate art of designing for the future
• Beets, basketball and mid-bore engines

Videos

• Cummins Stories presents: Climbing toward Destination Zero
• Cummins Stories presents: The legacy of a “King”
• Cummins Water Works: Watershed warriors
  
  

Additional Resources

• The power of water - Cummins Water Works

Dive into the conversation:

(00:00) This is Power Onward

(00:31) Haley’s farming roots and family background

(02:44) Visiting the Michigan cherry farm

(07:28) Challenges facing cherry farmers: economic, environmental, and market

(08:41) Innovation and resourcefulness in family farming

(12:41) How Cummins empowers local heroes and communities

(15:10) The role and importance of storytelling at Cummins

(17:18) People X Passion series and the power of employee stories