Vito Lucarelli of Temperance has no farming background in his family, but he bought his first farm tractor after he turned 16.

When most teenagers celebrate their 16th birthday, they think about what kind of car they might be able to drive.

Will it be a pickup truck? What color it will be? Will it be one that is handed down or something new?

For Vito Lucarelli of Temperance it wasn't what car he could find, but what farm tractor he could afford to buy.

Vito, now 19, is the son of Doug and Sally Lucarelli of Temperance. His family has no farming background, but he bought his first farm tractor after he turned 16.

His car came later, said Doug with a chuckle.

Vito bought a 1965 Farmall 806 tractor. He also bought the machinery used to cut, rake and bale hay.

The tractor has needed some maintenance, Vito said. This year it has taken quite a few band-aids.

What prompted Vitos interest to take up farming?

It started with a curiosity about what it takes to yield a good crop and the machinery and equipment needed to do so, Vito said.

After the first little taste of farming, its hard not to get the bug to want to do more and more, he added.

The Lucarelli family lives down the street from longtime farmer Orel Shaffer, 85 of Temperance. Shaffer has farmed soybeans, corn, wheat and hay and has become a mentor to Vito. For the last three years, Vito has been cutting hay and getting more tips and tricks along the way from Shaffer.

He is a hard worker, said Shaffer. I just give him some pointers to help make it easier.

Vito appreciates the opportunity to bounce different ideas off Shaffer, who almost always has advice or a story based on past experience.

It's a good way to avoid trying to reinvent the wheel and making mistakes that someone else may have already made, Vito said. "Plus, it's enjoyable hearing about the ways they used to farm back in the day on the ground that I have grown up on and am now farming myself.

Vito graduated from Bedford High School in 2018 with honors and a 4.0 grade point average. He was in the top six of his class.

Currently, he attends the University of Toledo, where he majors in biology. He plans to pursue medical school at UT, with his goal being to one day become a pediatric doctor.

With my classes, I look at farming as all of it relates to biology and chemistry, he said.

Vito has also been raising chickens since he was 9, and has geese, 5 goats, a 45-pound turkey and two Scottish Highland cows.

This past season, Vito has baled about 2,500 units of alfalfa and grass. Additionally, he has been working for Jake Janssen the past couple of years, running a baler, a new Holland stack wagon and occasionally raking straw.

This line of work has introduced me to some of the best people out there. Most would never hesitate to drop what they are doing to go help a neighbor and are just genuinely good people, said Vito. "The work is always hard and sometimes the money isn't the greatest, but its a good feeling knowing that you earned every penny in your pocket at the end of the season.

Coming from a family that has absolutely no agriculture background, its exciting to build something from nothing, Vito said, adding that he enjoys being to look at the progress he has made since he began farming.

Like the old timers all seem to say, farming is a disease that gets in your blood and is hard to shake, said Vito.

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Pre-med student pursues interest in agriculture - Monroe Evening News