Farm AID's Founder: Willie Nelson

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"I grew up in a farm town," says Willie. "I made my money to send myself to school and buy clothes working on the farms. I picked cotton, pulled corn, baled hay, worked in the cotton gin, was a Future Farmer. I still have livestock, too, horses and cattle. And I'd be losing money today if I depended on farming and ranching to make a living.

"See, nowadays, rich people use farms and ranches as tax write-offs, 'cause it's almost a given thing that you're not going to make money at it. And that's kinda sad, wouldn't you say? When your country's food production resources are used as conveniences by people who have too much money, you're in a lot of trouble."

Which seems like one bottom line. Another is the fear, frustration and loss suffered by people who farm simply because it's what they and their families have always done, and they love it. Yet another, the ground zero of Farm Aid's task, is a saying that has informed Willie Nelson throughout his singularly successful life. Appropriately, it's a well-used agricultural aphorism, repeat ed now in the Honeysuckle Rose as he plucks a sweet Spanish lament on his scarred old Martin: "The wheel which does the squeakin' gets the grease."

Willie's initiative has very tangible value to the farmers: food on the table, a lawyer to stave of foreclosure (if only for a while), a helpful voice on the phone when a load of double-ought buck or a bottle of Librium starts looking like the only relief in sight.

Jody Fisher, Willie's long-time secretary, reads the letters of gratitude, and what she feels is tangible, too. "I don't know," she says, "all those years in the music business, hanging out backstage, watching all that craziness, and now this. I mean, I've always loved Willie, working for him has always been really special, but I never knew you could feel this good from helping people."

Caroline Mugar also feels enriched. "People aren't sustained by food and fuel," she says. "They need spirit, too. And I think that's the most important thing Farm Aid has done. It's made farmers feel that they're connected, that their voices aren't just shouting against the wind. Someone cares.

"It's wonderful to be a part of that. And I don't mean this to sound grand, but I feel like I've sort of gotten my arms around this country. I've driven across it many times, and I've worked all sorts of jobs, and I've always wanted to know how things can work better. Now, from meeting the farmers, I feel that I know more about that. I feel that I have a better understanding of who the people are that are holding America together. It's very satisfying to know that there are such strong fiber and fabric out there. It feels solid; it doesn't feel skeletal."

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