"However, it is unfortunate that the attitude is still out there that farming is what you do when you can't do anything. The reality is I've got four children working in agriculture, two earn over $100,000 a year. There are just so many different careers you can enjoy within farming."
One of Gary's four employed Toi Ohomai graduates, Shannon Grey, grew up on a sheep and beef farm in Gisborne before her family moved to Taupo.
Despite her previous farming experience, she says she chose to study at Toi Ohomai to gain the qualifications needed by the modern farming industry.
"Toi Ohomai helped refresh everything I knew. My tutor, Mel, is the best person to teach farming you could ask for. Some of my classmates had never done farming before, but Mel made sure that no one got left behind."
Having gained employment as a casual worker with Gary during her level 3 studies, Shannon is now employed with Gary fulltime on a modern rotary farm handling over 1000 cows.
"Here, the farm offers ongoing training opportunities to increase your farming skills. In dairy, though, if you wanted to go hard, you can generally get into management in three to four years."
Having tried town living while working in hospitality, Shannon felt neither lifestyle was for her and returned to farming where she feels every day is different.
"Getting into Toi Ohomai and getting this job was mean. It's like getting back to reality.
"If you are an outdoors person, farming is the life."