Francis Joseph McDonald

Newfoundland & Labrador

Francis Joseph McDonald was born in Kilbride, Newfoundland on June 19, 1926.

He has owned a dairy farm for many years and has been associated with agriculture all his life. He joined the Sunshine Dairy Co-operative in the early 1950's and remained a member of this co-operative for many years. He helped establish Eastern Farmer's Co-op in 1949 and was its President for eleven years. He was a part of the farmers' group that established a community pasture in the early 1960's. This pasture is still in operation and continues to be used extensively by dairy farmers.

In 1961, he was a member of the group who helped establish the Avalon Race Track and was both a Director and Timekeeper for many years.

Francis was a strong advocate of producer organizations and provided a significant contribution in the re-establishment of the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Agriculture in 1985.

Since the inception of the Food and Livestock Show in 1985, Francis was a strong supporter both as an exhibitor and as the official Milker for the Dairy Competition. Francis has been a member of two Roman Catholic Councils. Firstly, he was a member of the Corpus Christ Parish Council in Kilbride, and in recent years, an active member of the St. Kevin's Parish Council in the Goulds.

Francis Joseph McDonald has been a progressive farmer for over forty years and has made a significant contribution to the agriculture industry of Newfoundland. In early 1992, he made the very difficult decision of selling his herd and quota, and looks forward to semi-retirement.

Nominated by the Avalon Farm Women's Association and the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Agriculture, Francis is very deserving of recognition in the Atlantic Agriculture Hall of Fame.