– Every Farmer has a Charles Lanning –
10,000 miracles
Lebanon cattle producer and physician Dr. Charles Lanning made a career of bringing lives into the world
Story and photos by Mark Johnson
– Every Farmer has a Story with Charles Lanning –
10,000 miracles
Lebanon cattle producer and physician Dr. Charles Lanning made a career of bringing lives into the world
Story and photos by Mark Johnson
Charles Lanning pulls his John Deere Gator into an open-sided hay barn and parks under the spout of an automated feed bin. The 71-year-old hops out of the Gator, engages the auger of the bin, and watches as Co-op feed fills the hopper of the feed dispenser mounted in the back of the vehicle.
“Nothing to it,” he points out.
In the shade of a nearby oak grove, a group of registered Angus heifers watches with interest, likely anticipating Charles’ call to the feed trough. The heifers are part of the herd of 90 cows on the rolling, 215-acre Wilson County farm.
“For an old guy like me, it’s mighty nice to have this system under shelter during rainy winters,” says Charles, a member of Wilson, Lawrence, and Macon-Trousdale Farmers Co-ops. “I’ve tried to automate as much as possible here on the farm so I can handle most of the workload myself.”
And he’s hardly a stranger to heavy workloads. Since growing up on a farm in Lawrenceburg, Charles has been devoted to working with cattle — one of his two lifelong passions.
The other may come as a surprise.
“In May of 2022, I retired after 42 years as an OB/GYN doctor,” he says as he turns off the auger and closes the hopper. “I’m not sure of the exact count, but I’ve delivered more than 10,000 babies, mostly here in Wilson County.”
In Lebanon, most people either know someone who was delivered by Dr. Lanning or were themselves. At the Wilson Farmers Cooperative store alone, Charles delivered all of Manager Morgan Locke’s three children and several of the employees working in the various departments.
“For one of those guys, I’ve delivered three generations of his family,” Charles says. “That’s not uncommon around here.”
His impact on the Wilson County community was such that Charles was even recognized with an official proclamation by the Tennessee General Assembly upon his retirement.
“I had always been fascinated by the birthing process, and as a Christian, I believe that the greatest miracle is birth.” — Charles Lanning
A member of Wilson, Lawrence, and Macon-Trousdale Farmers Co-ops, Lanning says he considers the employees at Wilson Farmers Co-op extended family. In fact, he delivered all three of Manager Morgan Locke's children, as well as several members of the Tire Department.
While it may sound unusual that a Tennessee farm boy would become an obstetrics and gynecology doctor, for Charles, it made perfect sense. His paternal grandfather was a Lawrenceburg sweet potato farmer who had such a fierce belief in education that he sent all nine of his children to college, including Charles’ father, who became a dentist, and two uncles who became pharmacists.
At an early age, Charles discovered that he loved science, cattle, and hard work.
“In high school, I earned 13 cents per bale to haul hay in my granddad’s 1947 Ford truck,” he recalls. “One by one, that’s how I bought the cattle for my original herd.”
During those years, Charles’ bent toward science and his experience in animal agriculture had him leaning toward becoming a veterinarian. But after earning a degree in chemistry and biology with distinction from the University of North Alabama in Florence, he took the MCAT (medical college admissions test) on a whim and soon found himself at the University of Tennessee School of Medicine in Memphis. With top marks, Charles was offered admission into several disciplines but was most interested in the OB/GYN field of study.
“I had always been fascinated by the birthing process, and as a Christian, I believe that the greatest miracle is birth,” Charles says. “That’s the only thing I wanted to do.”
In 1985, after four years of residency in Memphis, Charles was offered the opportunity to open a practice in Lebanon. Throughout the subsequent years, he continued to raise cattle on both his original family farm in Lawrenceburg and the one he purchased nine miles north of downtown Lebanon.
Charles and his wife of 53 years, Faye, also had a family of their own — four children and now, 11 grandchildren. He says he’s been blessed “beyond measure” and is thankful for his rural upbringing in the cattle business.
“There is something rewarding in pulling a calf that doesn’t immediately respond and doing what you need to do to ‘jump-start’ it into life,” he says. “It’s the same with babies, only much greater. People have asked me if I believe in miracles, and I tell them that when I was at work, I saw a miracle every day. In fact, I’ve seen 10,000 of them.”
Cattle producer and retired OB/GYN Dr. Charles Lanning feeds a few of the 90 registered Angus cattle on his 215-acre Lebanon farm. The 71-year-old retired in 2022 after 42 years — and more than 10,000 babies delivered, mostly in Wilson County — and now farms full time.
By Mark Johnson,
Contact mark@bigharvestcreative.com