Rogersville veteran, farmer receives $1K gift card to Tractor Supply

ROGERSVILLE — Army veteran and farmer Roy Seals, of Rogersville, has been awarded a $1,000 gift card to Tractor Supply from the Farmer Veteran Coalition. The grant is part of Tractor Supply's $100,000 donation to the FVC's Fellowship Fund, according to a press release, which provides direct assistance to veterans in their early years of farming or ranching. Seals, owner of Bent Gate Farms, is one of 50 recipients. Bent Gate Farms is a conventional and organic farming operation raising beef cattle, round and square hay and other crops for community members. Seals plans to use the $1,000 to maintain and expand his productions. Tractor Supply has partnered with FVC for eight years, donating $750,000 since then and assisting more than 450 farmer veterans nationwide. "Supporting our military heroes means standing by them long after their service ends, especially as they look for new opportunity and purpose as civilians," said Mary Winn Pilkington, Tractor Supply's senior vice president of investor relations and public relations, and president of the Tractor Supply Company Foundation. "FVC has proven that agriculture is a powerful outlet, offering these men and women a meaningful new career path alongside profound physical and psychological benefits," she said. "By stepping into farming, these veterans also strengthen the very fabric of the rural communities we serve. Through our longstanding partnership with FVC, we are privileged to support hundreds of farmer veterans each year as they grow their businesses, feed their neighbors and embark on a new adventure Out Here." An advisory panel of agricultural industry professionals evaluates Fellowship Fund applicants based on factors like their personal investment in the farm business, strength of funding request, vision and goals for the future of their business and community involvement. Recipients provide periodic progress reports, mentor other farmer veterans and demonstrate a desire to make a continued positive impact on the farmer veteran community.