Reviews
Worthwhile, indeed It Was All Worthwhile: The Life and Times of Roy and Clara Snyder (Pennsylvania German Folklore Society of Ontario, 2010, 115 pp.)
R
oy Snyder couldn’t make it to MEDA’s convention in Calgary this past November — only the third one he has missed. It wasn’t because, at the age of 95, he was ailing or too frail to travel. No, he just needed to stay back in Ontario to be present at the launch of this book. This is a folksy memoir, told in Snyder’s own style, along with a chapter telling the story of his wife Clara, who passed away in 2006. Two sections were of special interest to this reader. One is Snyder’s recounting of his long and distinguished career as a cattle breeder. The other is his involvement with MEDA, which he joined in 1963, a decade after its founding. Snyder had few equals in the cattle breeding industry, though his personal modesty camouflages the full extent of his achievements. You almost have to read between the lines to discover that he was acclaimed as “the father of artificial insemination,” an honour perhaps lost on the average reader but nonetheless vital to anyone who produces (or consumes) dairy products. He pioneered the use of frozen semen and embryo transplants in cattle, even before it was financially viable. Under his innovative leadership, the Waterloo Cattle Breeders Association was the first organization in the world to use 100% frozen semen, setting an example for the rest of the breeding industry. According to family lore, Snyder displayed an early
aptitude for his chosen career. While he was still a pre-teen, a milk tester came to the family farm to certify the cows and was amazed that the lad could recite every cow’s lineage with precision. Snyder still revels in the world of genetics, and rattles off names of the legendary Montvic and Rag Apple pedigrees, which apparently are the bovine equivalent of horse racing’s Sec-
He was a global leader in an industry that many of us barely know exists
building up Canada’s semen-exporting trade. He rubbed shoulders with dignitaries and prime ministers, including Canada’s John Diefenbaker and Pierre Elliot Trudeau. (Diefenbaker and his wife Olive showed up at the annual “Bull Night” of the Waterloo Cattle Breeders Association and ended up at the Snyders’ home to catch up on some rest.) Snyder weaves in his involvements with church-related institutions, including his home congregation (Erb St. Mennonite), Conrad Grebel University College, and MEDA. Those familiar with MEDA’s history will recognize the name Sarona, the organization’s maiden undertaking in Paraguay and recently immortalized by the renaming of MEDA’s investment division, now known as Sarona Asset Management, Inc. That first project aimed to bolster the vigor of the cattle being raised by the Paraguayan
retariat. Even an uninformed reader can be impressed by Snyder’s specialized expertise and commitment to a business that many of us barely know exists. Throughout his career he travelled to 80 countries
Roy Snyder has been attending MEDA conventions for as long as anyone can remember, missing only three. Here he is at the 2006 convention in Tampa, Florida.
The Marketplace January February 2011
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Mennonites. Sustained efforts (to which Snyder contributed by sending a shipment of Holstein semen) were so successful that the Mennonite colonies virtually dominate the country’s dairy industry today. Snyder describes a number of the MEDA projects he visited in the early years. One was a massive rice plantation that started with great fanfare but ultimately failed and lost a lot of money. “This was before I was on the board,” Snyder notes wryly. He touches on one of MEDA’s earliest credit programs with indigenous Paraguayans, led by Erie Sauder. “The Indian population really knew very little about financial credit arrangements, and the Indians’ comprehension of how a credit program grew was established,” Snyder writes. “This was a great thrill for Erie. Many Chaco Indians became Christians and adopted the Mennonite way of life including farming.” As was the practice in those days, MEDA trustees were assigned to personally oversee certain ventures. Snyder was put in charge of programs in Philippines and Bolivia, the latter country remaining a MEDA location for decades and producing many highly successful ventures. He offers insights into MEDA’s difficulties in getting a
