PHA bestows ‘Pioneer’ recognition on someone unforgettable

MARS, Pa. — “Ladies and gentlemen, the hoofprint Bob Morrell left on Holstein history is huge.”

With that proclamation, the well-known third-generation Crawford County dairy farmer (deceased) was honored with the 2026 Pioneer Memorial Award. It was bestowed on him during the Pennsylvania Holstein Convention held here earlier this month.

Bob was born April 4,1957, the middle child of three. He became a great cow man, not just at shows, but he truly loved cows; every cow in the barn. He had trouble letting go of his beloved creatures and often kept them past their prime. His compassion and care for his cows was an inspiration to those around him. 

For a time, he played basketball in high school, but gave that up for farming.  He was the 4-H kid that wanted to be BIG TIME, thus one of his nick names. He hit the tanbark trail at 16. He had a keen eye and knew a good thing when he saw it, so around this tender age, even though they didn’t marry until age 19, he picked his wife and soulmate and he also picked the farm’s first excellent cow, Karol, at a local sale. 

Another of Bob’s important purchases with big-time results was C Roselandvale Senator Alta, born in 1971. He owned her for only 3 ½ years, but she was sold to a string of several top investor herds of the 1970’s, soon scoring EX-95 and her final owners were John Lennon and his wife Yoko Ono. Bob had the only heifer calf this bigtime cow ever dropped. Sired by Marquis Ned and going on to score EX-91, Bob bred a legacy from her of at least 14 EX and six GMD’s, including Ebe-Tide Roxmary Alta (EX-95 GMD).

In 1992 Bob’s homebred Ebb-Tide Odyssey Bonita (EX-93 DOM) was named Honorable Mention All-Canadian 4-Year-Old.

A cow that fueled a lifetime of buying and selling and making connections was Farlows Valiant Rosie (EX-94 DOM) who was named All-American and All-Canadian in 1994.

Yet another cow that did very well for Bob was C Kenarbara Jethro Sasha, whom he purchased from the Barfoot family in northern Ontario as an unscored 2-year-old. Bob went on to develope her into an EX-96-3E “Queen”.  She was named Honorable Mention All-Canadian in 1993 and 1994, additionally Nominated All-Canadian another time and Nominated All-American twice. 

Also in 1994, Sasha stood second in Madison in the 5-year-old class. Sasha went on to produce over 250,000M, 10,488F and lived to be 17 and was immortalized with her beautiful head tattooed on Bob’s arm. 

Always on the hunt for the next “big leaguer,” Bob loved sharing his passion for showing, breeding and animal husbandry with young and old. He was a kind mentor to many in the industry. He made many friends and gave everyone a nickname.

Bob was a night owl and was notorious for making long late-night calls to breed enthusiasts and if you didn’t’ answer, he left you the world’s longest voicemail.

If you were lucky enough to tie in his barn at a show, you got advice, you had help, you learned something and had a barrel of laughs.  He often told jokes. Many times he made these up with his friend and neighbor Raymond Anthony in the punchline.

Bob was especially good on the halter and was in demand by many to be their “strap-dog.” He became a world-renowned judge; one of Pennsylvania’s all-time most sought after. He judged many shows throughout North America, as well nine foreign countries. Highlights of his judging career included the 1998 International Holstein Show at World Dairy Expo and the 2000 Canadian National Holstein Show at the Royal Winter Fair. His judge’s speeches were legendary and are still talked about today.

Bob’s prefix was Ebb-Tide — chosen by his parents, Charles “Bud” and Catherine Elaine Morrell — was named after the 1960’s hit song by the Righteous Brothers. For the years under his reigns, Ebb-Tide bred 1247 head in the U.S. herdbook and 88 head in the Canadian herdbook.  In the U.S., he bred a total of 117 EX cows including two at 95 points, four at 94, eight at 93, and 16 that scored 92 points. Additionally, he is credited with five EX cows in Canada and bred 13 Gold Medal Dams as well as three Dams of Merit. He owned and developed at least an additional 53 EX cows. His breeding stock were sold all across the United States, throughout Canada, and also Hungary, China, Italy, Japan, VietNam, and many South American countries.  He had bulls placed in United Breeders, Western Ontario Breeders and ABS.

Bob gave his wife, Candace (“Candy”) the credit for standing by his side to earn all of these industry accolades.  He loved and cherished her; their children Jason, Justin Matthew and Heather as well as all of his grandchildren.

The farm was demanding, but he always made time for his family even if that meant parking the combine at the football field to attend his son’s game — the talk of the town the next day.

A pioneer is characterized as forward-thinking and assertive, often breaking the boundaries to advance their ideas. And sometimes, a rebel is exactly that; he becomes a Pioneer so he can never be forgotten.