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On Friday, August 5th, Ward Laboratories celebrated 40 years in business with a VIP party and a celebration of Ray Ward's 85th Birthday! The event was held at the Ward Laboratories headquarters located at 4007 Cherry Ave. in Kearney, Nebraska, where Ward's family, friends, and colleagues came together to celebrate. The open house began at noon and concluded with tours of the lab from 2 to 6 pm.
Ray Ward grew up on a farm near Western, Nebraska. This location attracts visitors passionate about agriculture and soil health from across the state. Ward's experience in laboratory testing, analysis, and consultation was experienced firsthand on the farm and along with degrees from both the University of Nebraska - Lincoln (UNL) and South Dakota State University (SDSU).
Ward Laboratories was founded in June 1983 when Ray and Jolene Ward had relocated to Kearney, Nebraska. The two had done a set up within a three-bay garage in a local industrial park. Six months later, the couple had moved to their first 3,500 square ft laboratory. It was a journey of discovery, diligence, and hard work that led to the Wards to pursue a lab of their own 40 years ago.
Still holding true to their dedication of serving every customer, Ward Labs has tested 447,000 soil, feed, plant, water, and manure samples. With that being said, they have hosted numerous amounts of visitors to the lab throughout the years and the Ward family farm outside of Western, Nebraska. Where the story began in Western, Neb. continues to this day and forty years later, the soil health movement is catching its momentum.
Click here to view the Facebook Live event.