FRS and GMRS Two-Way Radios Keep Farming Family Connected
Missouri farmer, Kayla Wieczorek keeps her family connected across their operation and home with the help of FRS and GMRS two-way radios.
She takes us inside their operation, sharing how FRS and GMRS two-way radios bridge the communication gap.
About the Wieczorek farm
Fist-generation farmers, Kayla Wieczorek and her husband founded their operation several years ago. Orginally, the farm was strictly hay.
That all changed about four years ago when Wieczorek decided to leave her finance job and work on the farm full-time. The duo added cattle to their operation.
“It was so refreshing. I was already working 60 plus hours in my career and then coming home to help him on the farm every evening. When I let go of my career, it was a big eye opener. I’m able to spend more time with our kids who are out on the farm as well. If it wasn’t for me being home, we wouldn’t have the cattle.”
While having cattle has impacted their workload, Wieczorek wouldn't change a thing.
"I was raised with cattle so it was really nice to be able to raise our kids doing the same things I did- our cattle are handled almost everyday, you get to see the grain pastures, watch birth, we’re there for it all," she said.
FRS and GMRS two-way radios on the farm
Wieczorek and her family uses the MXT575 MicroMobile® GMRS 50-Watt Two-Way Radio, MXT115 MicroMobile GMRS 15-Watt Two-Way Radio, T71 X-Talker FRS Walkie Talkie – T71VP3, LXT630 FRS License-Free Walkie Talkie 2 Pack Yellow – LXT630VP3, and T10 X-Talker FRS Walkie Talkie 3 Pack Multi-Color – T10X3M.
With just her and her husband working on the farm, the use of two-way radio communication on the farm has drastically improved efficiency.
"If you’ve ever worked with a spouse or partner, you know there can easily be some miscommunications, especially if you’re using hand signals," she said.
Wieczorek said they only have cellphone service on some portions of their property so two-way radios have brought reliable communication to the operation.
“The radios are so much more handy than the cellphones. You’re not having to juggle your phone, you’re not killing your battery, we’re not yelling at one another."
Now that her kids help out on the farm, the communication has been even more important.
“Usually Keaton has been raking for us so he’s on the farm with us. There’s no miscommunication between what Jason and I are doing, what Jason and Keaton are doing. We can all hear what is going on.”
She couldn’t imagine working the farm without the use of two-way radios.
“The radios are phenomenal. They have made life so much easier than trying to be on a phone. All of us can hear what’s going on."
November on the farm
During the month of November, they’re sending out a lot of hay. While calving doesn’t start until February, the cows are still keeping them busy this time of year.
Using two-way radios has been key in keeping the cattle operation running smoothly.
“When we’re moving cattle and we’ve got 2 different pens we can communicate. He can let me know if he’s brought hay down or if I need to get some more for him. I have them stacked and ready so he doesn’t have to wait on me. It makes things a lot more efficient. ”
If the weather stays dry, her husband will get out and spread lime.
“One of us spreads lime and the other is in the skid loader. We use the radios in the skin loader and we know exactly how full we are. We’re not getting in and out trying to estimate.”
Because two-way radios bring instant communication, Wieczorek and her husband are also able to easily keep connected to the kids who are in the house while they’re working.
