Meanwhile, Saratoga Crops' wheat is sent directly to the Bishops' Storehouse. The wheat, along with the truckloads of dairy products Westlake Farm produces each day, are among the myriad commodities distributed by the LDS Church as part of its worldwide welfare program. Commodities are given to families in need, without charge.

"It's not a flashy job," Amy Baldauf said about Dave's responsibility. "But he takes it serious."

It appears the self-described "country boy" has been preparing all his life for his humble but noble calling in the dirt.

As soon as he was old enough to hoe a row on his family's farm in New York, he was experimenting in Mother Nature's dirty laboratory. And when it came time for college, instead of escaping the demanding farm life of his childhood with a possible white-collar professional career, he instead set his sights on it. He attended Utah State University agriculture courses, then left for Russia, where he taught others modern tricks to the ancient trade.

Every season he has weathered, every field he has watered and every plow he has mended for 14 years has been part of Dave Baldauf's modest but fundamental personal quest to keep the base of the food chain fueled so the poor may eat.

"We feed the cows so they can feed the needy," he said.

E-mail: jhancock@desnews.com