Eustice Callahan Jr.’s corn maze is shaped like a fire truck
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
A producer from Fairmont, N.C., is using his family farm’s agritourism to show support for local firefighters.
This year’s 10-acre corn maze at Cukabury Farms is shaped like a fire truck to help change some of the narrative surrounding volunteer firefighters.
The idea came after reports surfaced of volunteer firefighters purposely setting fires.
The news “put a bad persona on local fire departments,” Eustice Callahan Jr., owner of Cukabury Farms, told The Robesonian on Aug. 26. “I just thought that it would be a great thing for us to just commemorate what they do and thank them.”
Callahan seeded his corn on July 8, much later than other producers. On his farm, the stalks are worth more than the ears.
“We don’t care about the ears of corn,” he said. “We don’t care about anything but just making the corn a hideaway for them to walk. That’s all we do.”
The fire truck is patterned after collectibles Callahan displays on the farm.
The farmer enlisted the help of Dwayne Batten, a corn maze expert, to bring the idea to life.
Batten drew the design on one-quarter inch grid paper, with each grid representing about 25 feet. The design is then run through multiple programs before he uses a computer on his mower with a GPS system.
“I’m actually following the line and it changes my line from gray color to red color so I know what to cut,” Batten told The Robesonian.
Batten finished cutting the maze in less than two days.
Callahan hopes anyone who enjoys the corn maze will take a moment to appreciate volunteer firefighters.
“I’ve never been on a fire department, but I’ve always appreciated what a volunteer firefighter does,” he said. “They sacrifice family. They sacrifice money. They sacrifice time. We can’t do without them.”
Eustice Callahan stands in his corn maze
Tomeka Sinclair photo