| ‘Life on
the Farm’ board game wins National Education Award |
| Ev Johnson and her brother,
Keith Gohl, understand the rewards - and pitfalls - of dairy farming. The siblings grew up on a dairy farm in Pierz, Minnesota where Gohl has continued the family tradition as a third-generation dairy farmer. Anything can happen when you're farming. A cow may accidentally get shot by a hunter. Or milk prices may be too low to make a decent living that year. One holiday night as they and their cousins were chatting - and laughing about growing up on a farm, they came up with an idea: Why not create a board game that shows people what dairy farming is really like?And that's precisely what Johnson and Gohl did. It took the brother and sister - and their spouses, Erik Johnson and Lori Gohl - years to develop "Life on the Farm,'' a board game like "Life'' or "Payday'' they believed would become a hit for families and teach people what life islike on a family farm. The rules of the game are simple: Start with $10,000 and attempt to develop a successful dairy operation. The first player who owns 60 cows and has all of his or her startup money can 'retire' from the farm and win the game. Sixty cows were about how many head of cattle their parents, Elmer and Selma Gohl, had when they retired, said Ev Johnson. While most board games are competitive in nature, in this board game, like in real life, family farmers help their neighbors, said Johnson. Players move their game pieces around the board and collect milk checks. The amount of money collected depends on the number of cows you own. The game is full of challenges and rewards. It all began after Johnson developed a rough game prototype based on ideas they had. "The first draft was made out of tag board and purple magic markers,'' she said with a laugh. The families played the game over and over, making changes to ensure the game mimicked life on a farm and, most important, that it was fun for the entire family, even the younger children. The game prototype took first place at an inventors fair in Brainerd in 1988. It became a project the entire family worked together on and believed in. Elmer Gohl offered his basement to help his son and daughter create their farming board game. The Gohl family mass assembled the 5000 original games in their parents basement, shrink-wrapping them together. "Mom (Selma Gohl) was the main assembler,"said Johnson. Within 18 months, they had sold all 5000 games, and they decided to take a break from the gaming business for a few years as the Johnsons and Gohls raised their young families. In 1996 they revamped the game,and started marketing the game to larger stores, specialty stores and family-owned smaller shops. This year the professional board game, which is now produced in China, is available nationally at www.KBtoys.com, ToysRUs.com, and at Farm and specialty stores throughout the state and country. They developed a Web site - www.werfun.com - where the games also can be purchased. Gohl states, “It’s easy to understand and play. You don't spend a lot of time reading directions, and grandparents through children can enjoy it together.” Age range is 8-108. “My favorite comment was posted to our werfun.com website.” said Johnson. “It stated…‘My 21-year-old and his friends are playing it instead of poker - they just have a riot taking cows from each other!' You know, that is what’s so special about board games, you are able to have some really good times together in a non-confrontational way.” College students from Cornell University agree – they had so much fun that they used Life on the Farm® as a fundraiser for their school. Ironically, the farm family is hoping that their Life on the Farm board game may end up helping the current conditions on their own third-generation family farm. A couple of years ago a windstorm damaged the family's 120-year-old barn, which later fell down. Keith and Lori Gohl made the tough decision to sell their 45 milk cows and find outside work. It was a big change right then. ``A very big change,'' said Gohl. If the game is a successful venture, they hope to use some of the profits to improve what’s left of the family farm. ``It's what the entire family is hoping for,'' Johnson said. On January 15, 2003, Life on the Farm® won the 2002 Award of Excellence, and was voted the "Best Educational Board Game reviewed in 2002" by the National Education Clearinghouse organization. They said it 'enhances critical thinking, money and math skills in a fun and natural way.' Johnson just finished exhibiting Life on the Farm® and a prototype of the “Preschool Edition” at Toy Fair in New York City February 16-19, 2003. “It was an incredible experience for a farm girl to be in that huge city during the terror alerts and peace protests…but the people at the show absolutely loved our preschool edition, so we should have it on the market by this fall!” said Ev Johnson. Ideally, they'd like to open a plant and produce more games. They have created prototypes for a few additional games for preschoolers to adults. So, do you ever get tired of 'city-life'? Well, now you can just head on over to your game closet to experience 'Life on the Farm®.' For more information visit www.werfun.com, or call 1-800-937-3864 (1-800-We-R-FUN-4) ``Life on the Farm'' sells for $20. |
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