Old machines, new life at Sterling farm show

STERLING — As Jim Miller wandered around the old tractors and hit-and-miss engines that had come to his church’s annual Farm Heritage Festival Show at East Jordan United Methodist Church last August, the pastor noticed something missing from the long-running event.

It could use a little more outreach, he thought.

Heritage and horsepower had helped sustain the event through its nearly 20-year history, along with the camaraderie of those who were a part of it and the people who attended it — but Miller was thinking about more than just a tractor ride down memory lane: He was looking toward the future. He wanted to plant seeds that would help the event grow into something more. He envisioned a show that would not only celebrate farming, but reach out to the community. He wanted to see younger generations come to appreciate not only the horsepower, but the power of good, and extend a hand to people in need of food and guidance.

It was a vision that aligned with the mission of his church: To reach the least and the lost, and feed the lonely and the hungry — and along the way, give people a taste of what life on the farm used to be like.

East Jordan United Methodist Church, between Sterling and Polo, has hosted its Farm Heritage Festival since 2007. This year’s show is at 7 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 23, on the church grounds.

Admission is free, and breakfast and lunch will be served for a nominal fee. It features antique farm equipment, live demonstrations of old-fashioned farm tasks, and children’s activities. Last year’s event brought in around 75 tractors and meals fed around 350 to 400 people, Miller said.

This year’s event also plans to have a mobile food pantry for people facing issues of food insecurity. Miller is working with Sauk Valley Foodbank of Sterling to help him in his mission.

“I can envision a couple of hundred cars lined up Saturday morning getting free food,” Miller said. “We’re reaching the least and the lost.”

Miller came to East Jordan in 2014 after serving as pastor at First United Methodist Church in Princeton. He took over operation of the festival in 2024, after it was run by another church member. In Princeton, Miller organized the nonprofit Our Table organization of volunteers who provide free meals and fellowship to those in need on the second and fourth Monday of each month. Our Table continues to be a resource for the community, and its success has helped fuel Miller’s desire to continue to find ways to combat food insecurity.

“I’ve been involved with church all of my life, and if I could identify what my forte would be: it would be feeding the hungry and the lonely until hunger is gone,” Miller said. “I found out that a lot of people were having a hard time managing how they were going to pay their doctor’s bills and buy groceries, or gas for their car. They needed a lot of help. I decided we couldn’t do everything for them, but we can feed them.”

As part of the outreach effort, Miller plans to have a few tents at the event where people can pray and seek guidance. “To me, the Farm Heritage Festival is a way to show the community a way of coming together around Jesus Christ,” he said. “I want people to know that there’s help out here for them.”

Miller also plans to resurrect a Cross Ministry that he started in 2022. The idea was to help support awareness of the ongoing war in Ukraine. Church members made around a couple of thousand white crosses and planted them throughout the church’s property. Each cross has a typewritten notes, one with a prayer for those affected by the war and another that shares a story about a rally in Frankenmuth, Mich., where an athiest’s complaint about the cross was countered by support of religious beliefs. Crosses will be available throughout the property for people to take home.

“I have this idea of feeding the lonely and the hungry, that is, blessing our communities,” Miller said. “Every church should be a blessing to the community. I don’t think we should be set apart from the community, I think we should be set with the community.”

Along with all the tractors, farm implements and hit-and-misses, the show will also have a demonstration of threshing machines, saw mills, blacksmithing and rope making. Members of Boy Scout Troop 337 from Polo will be on hand to teach outdoor skills such as tying knots, casting fishing lines, building fires and boiling water; there will be a fastest fire build contest as well.

The show also includes a petting zoo with chickens, cattle and goats, with some of the goats being part of a milking demonstration. Local farmers will set up stands to sell their produce, and the show also includes a bake sale and a bounce house for children. As of mid-June, Miller was trying to find someone to bring an apple cider press and give a demonstration. Additional activities will be announced on the church’s Facebook page closer to the event.

With 20 years of history behind it, the Farm Heritage Festival has become as much a part of the local landscape as the fields and farms that surround the church, and Miller looks forward to seeing the show continue to grow, a mission that’s close to his heart at a church in the heart of the country.

“That’s why I want to do this. I want to feed the lonely and the hungry until hunger’s gone, and want to reach the least and the lost, and let them know there’s a place for them.”

The Farm Heritage Show at East Jordan United Methodist Church, 22027 Polo Road in rural Sterling, will start at 7 a.m. Aug. 23. Admission is free; breakfast and lunch will be served for a nominal fee.

Find the church on Facebook, email willowemoc@gmail.com or call pastor Jim Miller at 815-866-6088 for more information.