Why Andrew Degginger is Proud to be a Farmer

ENTERPRISE, Ala. (WTVY) - While many farmers get their start taking over the family farm, some have to start fresh on a much smaller scale.

That’s the case with Andrew Degginger, who only started his own homestead behind his mechanic shop in downtown Enterprise.

“Most of my experience has been in aviation or automotive mechanics. I did a little bit of work on the farm. I grew up a city boy in South Kansas City and spent the weekend at my grandpa’s,” said Degginger. “I got to work around a little bit of livestock, a little bit of crop, small family farm. Something about it growing up, just sitting there watching how things work, it just made sense to me.”

Degginger acted on the concept of homesteading at a time when many were questioning the future.

“When COVID started hitting a lot of us, we really started seeing how quickly things can take a turn,” said Degginger. “I wouldn’t necessarily say it scared me or worried me, but it brings everything to light about how fragile our whole system is.”

Now, Degginger works with a little bit of everything. His up-and-coming homestead consists of goats, ducks, chickens, bees, a variety of crops and his own greenhouse.

He hopes his ambition will inspire others to dabble in homesteading.

“You can either let it scare you away and take away your ability to find out what that first step is to start that process, or you can do like I did and just jump into it,” said Degginger. “Not everybody’s able to do that. They just don’t have that state of mind, but I want to work towards being that person who can inspire that next person.”

Though small at first glance, Degginger has plans to turn his homestead into a full-scale operation.

He’s faced troubles early but says these are all part of starting and looks forward to taking things to the next level.

“My name is Andrew Degginger and I’m proud to be a homesteader because I enjoy everything that goes into the farm, I enjoy working with my hands and I just enjoy the feeling of knowing that I can sustain my family,” said Degginger.

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