2013 NEVADA FARM BUREAU VIDEO CONTEST

2013 NEVADA FARM BUREAU VIDEO CONTEST

GENERAL INFORMATION: 

(Please retain a copy of this information for your records.)

 Please have CD/electronic entries to Cindy Hardy by October 14, 2013.

 County rules and prizes are at the discretion of the respective County Farm Bureaus

DIVISIONS: SENIOR DIVISION: 9th - 12th Grade

YF&R DIVISION: 18 – 36 years

TOPICS: 

“Food From Farm to Fork”, 

or “A day in the Life of a Rancher or Farmer”.

STATE AWARDS: FOR EACH DIVISION:

 1st Place - $100; 2nd Place - $ 75; 3rd Place - $50

GENERAL RULES:

1. Each video is to be produced by an individual or a group of up to three contestants. The oldest contestant in a
group determines Division. Prize money is awarded lump sum to a group.
2. Videos will be between 2 and 5 minutes in length. Penalties are assessed for under or over the time limit. Use
permanent marker to identify contestant name(s), school, Division, title/topic on a CD.
3. Each video will cover a single topic and be judged: 25 pts: Appropriateness to topic, Accuracy and Organization;
15pts: Delivery, Special Effects and Music; 10 pts: Interesting and Understandable.
4. State video entries will be judged at the Farm Bureau Annual Meeting in November 2013.
5. All decisions of the judges are final. Videos without a SIGNED entry form are disqualified.
Entry forms and Video CDs for the State Contest are due by 5:00 p.m., October 14, 2013
Please submit videos to the State Farm Bureau Women’s Chair- Cindy Hardy
SIGNED Hard Copy Entry Forms and Video CD’s Submitted by Mail: P.O. Box 112 Logandale NV 89021

Any questions, please call 702-398-3137 or 702-375-8124





2013 FARM BUREAU VIDEO CONTEST ENTRY FORM:
TITLE OF VIDEO: _____________________________________________________________________
CONTESTANT(S) NAME(S): ADDRESS: CITY: ZIP: GRADE/AGE:
List Main Contact on First set of Lines:
*______________________, ________________________, _____________, __________ __________
_______________________, ________________________, _____________, __________ __________
_______________________, ________________________, _____________, __________ __________
SCHOOL: _______________________________________________
COUNTY: ____________________
*MAIN CONTACT: HOME PHONE: ____________________
CELL PHONE: ___________________
Permission to Post Video on the internet YES________ NO_______
SIGNATURE OF PARENT(S): _____________________________________________________________
SIGNATURE OF PARENT(S): _____________________________________________________________
SIGNATURE OF PARENT(S): _____________________________________________________________
This SIGNED permission form is required to accompany the video entry. Thank you.
(2009 - 2012 Videos can be seen at: http://www.youtube.com/user/NVFBVideoContest#p/u )

And the Winner is..... (NVFB 2012 Discussion Meet)

While Nevada Farm Bureau's Young Farmer and Ranchers were discussing current Ag topics in the Discussion Meet, our Youngest Young Farmer and Rancher's were also preparing for future discussion meets.  hopefully 20 years from now these little boys will be carrying on the traditions of Ag that their parents  are instilling in them from a very early age!  These cute boys are the sons of the State FFA Advisor, the Elko County FB YF&R Chair, and the NVFB State YF&R Chair.

The final round of the Discussion Meet is held at the NVFB Annual Meeting's Awards dinner on the final night of the meeting.  This has been the tradition for the last few years as it gives the opportunity for the members attending to all see what the DM is and gives the competitors an opportunity to compete in front of the crowd.

Our final round from left to right was: Candace Shrecengost, Dann Mathews, (Irene Barlow as moderator) Corey Shrecengost, (Doug Bushman as room monitor) and Lacey Tom.

Nevada Farm Bureau members listen to the Discussion Meet as competitors discuss:

2. What can be done to encourage young farmers and ranchers to return home to the farm if it means living in a rural area that does not provide the same amenities (education, health care, technology) as a metropolitan community? 

Dann gives his final one minute closing.  

Unfortunately, I was not the picture fanatic at this meeting that I usually am--trying to carry a diaper bag, a baby, stroller, my Farm Bureau binder and bag, and my camera bag was just too much and so the camera bag was the one that was dropped.  That means I don't have pictures of the winners, but here are the final results of a great discussion meet:

1st Place:  Corey S.

2nd Place: Dann M.

3rd Place:  Candace S.

4th: Lacey T.

Congratulations to all on a great job!  

Nevada Farm Bureau YF&R Discussion Meet 2012

This year was the largest Discussion Meet that we have had since I first attended the Nevada Farm Bureau's Annual Meeting 6 years ago in Tonopah.  I competed that day and was one of only two people that had come to the meeting to do so.  We convinced three others to join so that we would actually be able to have a 'group' discussion.  The last two years we have had nine people.  This year (drumroll, please) we had TEN!  Okay, that may not seem so big to you, but there were a few others there that we could have begged and pleaded with to join, and that is my whole point--there were ten competing YF&R members, and and about ten others attending that day that were not competing.  That is a big deal from six years ago.  All of the other states that I have visited with through YF&R activities and meetings have told me "Don't give up and Don't get discouraged, it takes time to build the YF&R program."  So, that is what I keep in mind when it seems slow.  But at least it seems steady, also.  Clark County has a full program now working.  Elko has a YF&R Chair that attended their first annual meeting and was excited about being involved.  And we have in the works a great plan to build the program in 2013 to each active county!  But, enough about that--here is a re-cap of our Discussion Meet this year:

In the first round of discussion we had Dan B. from Clark, Kaley S. from Clark, our past year's DM Winner, Irene B. from Clark, who helped as our Moderator.

Also competing in the first round were Jon D. from Elko, Candace S. from Elko, and Dann M. of Lincoln.

Competitors are introduced to the room and to the topic, they are then given the opportunity to give a 30 second opening statement on the topic before the discussion begins.  They are judged on time, presentation, cooperation, knowledge of the topic, etc.  Their topic was:  How can Farm Bureau play a role to ensure the viability of quality agricultural education programs within our schools? 

Out in the foyer we were prepping future YF&R members for the Discussion Meet.

Dann gets his final point in before the round ends.

Round two brought five more competitors to the table--Lacey T. from Clark.

Cory S. from Elko and Ashley W. from Churchill, were both attentive to the discussion at hand, the topic of this round was:  Certain sectors of agriculture are labor intensive and rely heavily on immigrant workers. What is a fair and balanced immigration policy?

Cody M. is another of our collegiate competitors from Elko County.

And the final contestant in this round is NV FFA President, Margaret W.

The round closes and the competitors have a one minute period of quiet time to compose their thoughts in order to give their one minute closing statements. After that the judges head out to tally the scores and choose the final four competitors for the final round of Discussion!!

Why should you compete???

There are great cash prizes as state meeting for the winners of our Discussion Meet, but the prizes at nationals are even better--just thought you should know what you could be competing for if you are interested in giving the Discussion Meet a chance!!



American Farm Bureau Federation® (AFBF)
2013 AFBF Young Farmers & Ranchers (YF&R)
Competitive Event Prizes
___________________________________________________________________________________
AFBF YF&R Discussion Meet
Winner* Receives:
• Choice of either a 2013 Chevrolet Silverado or 2013 GMC Sierra ( (approximate retail value of $35,000)
*Sponsor: GM, located at 100 Renaissance Center, Detroit, MI 48265-1000, is the sponsor of the award. The 2013 Pickup award is not transferable, assignable, and/or redeemable for cash. The Award Winner is solely responsible for the payment of any and all related federal and/or state income tax with respect to the receipt of this award.
• Paid registration to the 2013 AFBF YF&R Leadership Conference
o February 8-11, 2013 in Phoenix, AZ
The three (3) Finalists** each receive:
• A Case IH Farmall 55A (approximate retail value of $17,500)
**Sponsor: Case IH, located at 621 State Street, Racine, WI 53402, is the sponsor of the Finalists Awards. The Case IH compact tractor award is not transferable, assignable, and/or redeemable for cash. Each Finalist Award Winner is solely responsible for the payment of any and all related federal and/or state income tax with respect to the receipt of this award.
• $2,500 cash prize
• STIHL Farm Boss (approximate retail value of $360).
**Sponsor: STIHL, located at 536 Viking Drive, Virginia Beach, VA 23452, is the sponsor of the Runner-Up Awards. The STIHL Farm Boss award is not transferable, assignable, and/or redeemable for cash. Each Runner-Up Award Winner is solely responsible for the payment of any and all related federal and/or state income tax with respect to the receipt of these awards.
In the event any of the above event prizes/awards are unavailable,
AFBF reserves the right to substitute a prize of comparable or greater value in its sole discretion.


____________________________________________________________
AFBF YF&R Collegiate Discussion Meet
Winner* Receives:
• A $2,500 scholarship
The three (3) Finalists* will each receive:
• A $1,000 scholarship
Every participant* receives:
• A $250 scholarship
*Sponsor: CHS Foundation, located at 5500 Cenex Drive, Inver Grove Heights, MN 55077, is the sole sponsor of YF&R Collegiate Discussion Meet. Each Scholarship Recipient is solely responsible for the payment of any and all related federal and/or state income tax with respect to the receipt of this award.
In the event any of the above event prizes/awards are unavailable,
AFBF reserves the right to substitute a prize of comparable or greater value in its sole discretion.

Letting Go of the Family Farm......

I have been off the wire for quite a few months now--shockingly (to me anyway) my baby is four months this week--so, I shouldn't have any excuses, right?  Yeah, right.  It seems that every day is a race.  Have you ever considered training for a marathon?  I have.  Yes, I have been called crazy before.  I also have been running on and off since I was in 8th grade, so, it is definitely something that has tickled my brain before.  Lately, though, I have felt that everyday of my life was like running a marathon.  Not that you need an example, but here is one:  Thursday I got up at 6:20 am, fought the kids who were hung over from Halloween to get chores done and off to school by 7:45, taking care of baby in the meantime.  My son came in from doing chores to tell me that he thought our horse was dying, so in between getting them off and my next item on the agenda, my husband and I tried to take care of him, to no avail.  I had to be somewhere by 9 am to help someone pack up for a move, my daughter gets out at 9:45, so I sent her to a friends, by the time we were done it was time to feed the baby and pick-up the boys--I had learned two days before that they had parent-teacher conferences that day, after I had already scheduled the baby's appointment for his 4-month check-up and immunizations.  So, by the time I got them home, fed, and checked on the horse (finally making arrangements for my husband to come home and help take care of him, and worrying about not being there for my kids as they said good-bye) back to three parent-teacher conferences, down to Caliente to the clinic, then to get shots, then to run a few more errands, home to pick up my daughter for dance, home to make dinner and get ready for another meeting. Not a second for any cleaning, laundry, dishes, so the house is kind of scary, but at least the day is over.  Thank heavens it is the weekend (we're on a 4-day school week), because we didn't get any time for homework, which usually takes 2-3 hours a day.  We recently learned that two of our sons are dyslexic and so the majority of the effort to help them learn to read fluently comes back on me.
Not every day is quite this busy, but at the same time, I usually get to sit when I am feeding the baby and that doesn't make for easy typing, so my blogging gets neglected pretty badly.  In the midst of the baby coming, school starting, learning about the dyslexia, there was also the issue of the family farm.

My dad and several of the grandkids, doing chores at the farm.

This past few months, my grandparent's sold the family farm that my dad and his twin brother have ran for the last 30 years.  The farm that I spent my childhood on.  And, the weight of something like that weighs heavily on all of us.  It has caused a lot of hard feelings.

My mom and two of my kids feeding a calf.

They sold it to one of my dad's younger brother's who has never been involved with it.  They sold it to him after promising my dad and uncle that they would talk to them, give them the opportunity first. They sold it without even telling them.  And, so our family has been grieving.  It has like losing a family member.

 There is a grieving process--hurt and anger, and trying to not tear the family apart in the process, love those who have hurt and forgive.  And while I no longer live in Utah, next to the farm, my kids still loved to go and help grandpa do chores and be at the farm and it has become a part of them, so three generations of my family, and my uncle's family are grieving the loss.
We spent a lot of time listening and learning in the last couple of years of Farm Bureau meetings and conferences to people who have seen so many familiar stories and have tried so hard to help prevent these break-ups and losses, but my dad never truly believed that it would happen--that his parents would sell him out.
So, they have been looking for pasture for the horses, gathering up the few things they were allowed to take, and trying hard to not become bitter.  And, at least, in a way, the farm is still in the 'family,' though that means  a hobby farm for my wealthy aunt and uncle.  The years, hours, blood, sweat and tears my dad and uncle have put into have almost no account to them.  The memories are all we have to hold, and right now, they hurt to think about because they still represent loss.  And, though there is a lot more I could say, this was the first time I really even felt I could type about it (and had time to), without the hurt and frustration and bitterness that have been plaguing me when I think about it.
So, my advice to any of you who are going to be passing on the farm, or wanting to be involved with the passing on of the farm--don't think that it won't happen to you the way it happened to us--take the time to meet with a mediator, to discuss to  plan, to express feelings.  Did my grandparents have any idea how much this would hurt their sons?  I honestly don't know--I hope not, because I don't want to believe they would have gone forward with it knowing that, but at the same time I can't imagine how they couldn't.  Weekends and summers and early mornings and late nights--chores have to be done, cows fed, horses, hay.  The barn with the swing out of the hayloft.  Water turns, digging ditches in springtime.  Fixing equipment that's always breaking down.  Not an easy thing to take care of for years, but an even harder thing to have one day and gone the next.

Who's Farming in our Future.....Something to think about.....

**This was a great article that I found recently and applied a lot to YF&R members or future YF&R members**  --JP

U.S. agriculture needs a transfusion of youth

Nov. 1, 2012by Elton Robinson in Farm Press Blog

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• With so many farmers nearing retirement, the question looms, who will farm this land in 2025, a scant 13 years from now?
• The challenge of replacing retiring farmers is daunting, but a University of Missouri professor is doing his part to help prepare young farmers for agricultural careers.
• Kevin Moore is teaching a class which focuses on subjects such as financial planning, developing business plans and features visits from farmers and professors who cover topics such as estate planning, business organization and tax management.

A recent USDA survey forewarns of an impending crisis in agriculture. It’s not about too many rules and regulations restricting farmer profitability, inadequate farm policy or rising input costs, although these factors could very well play into the crisis.

It’s not about land, or water or conservation. There are plenty of rules in place to preserve these resources.

Little has been done however, to encourage the next generation of farmers to step in and provide society’s food, feed, fuel and fiber. With so many U.S. farmers so close to retirement, and a generation of young people less inclined to follow in their parent’s footsteps, one wonders, who will be farming this land in 2025, a scant 13 years from now?

What a professor at the University of Missouri is doing to address this potential shortage of knowledge and skill won’t by itself provide the necessary transfusion of youth. But it’s a good start.

Kevin Moore, an associate professor of agricultural economics, teaches a class at UM called “Returning to the Farm.” It prepares students to overcome the financial and personality hurdles of becoming a farmer.

“The purpose of the class is to teach students the skills that they will need to overcome the financial and societal pressures they face when going back to the family farm or starting their own farms,” Moore said.

The class focuses on subjects such as financial planning, developing business plans and features visits from farmers and professors who cover topics such as estate planning, business organization and tax management.

“If students are prepared to face the first five years of business, they can be successful in the farming industry,” Moore said. “The class helps them prepare for these situations.”

Moore believes many young children of today are more attracted to what they see as more lucrative, non-farming careers and an urban lifestyle. Public perception of agriculture has fallen in recent years, adding to the pressure to seek employment elsewhere.

Moore says parents often wait too long to discuss their children’s goals. “All too often, assumptions are made about the next generation coming back to the farm,” Moore said. “This leaves a lot of planning and decisions for later, during crunch time when kids have already made decisions about the direction of their lives. If younger adults are going to continue to choose not to go into the farming industry, then we may run into a problem, within the next decade or two, due to the lack of farmers in the United States.”

Moore points out that only 5 percent of principal farm operators nationwide are under the age of 35. With one-third of U.S. farmers now at 65 or older, time is running short.

State Meeting Almost Here!!

Hi all,
I could overwhelm you with tales of my busy life and what has been keeping me from posting on the YF&R blog, but I am sure you all have similar tales to tell!  So, instead I just want to remind you that the state meeting is coming up the 8-10 of NOV. in Carson City.  For registration forms, info on hotel rooms and agenda for the meeting go to  http://nvfb.org/annualmeeting.html.  

For those interested in the Discussion Meet contest, it will be held Friday afternoon and evening and the question's for the contest are available on the side of this blog--or you can message me for any questions you might have!


HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!!

Great Article about Importance of Kids Working on Family Farms......

I know that I am a little behind, and we have had a big (and hopefully NOT brief) victory over the Department of Labor's proposed regulations on Family Farming, but a friend shared this on facebook, and it is a GREAT article from a different perspective than most of ours in the Ag community, but still from one who has seen the benefit of our children working on the farm!  Check it out!!

http://learningtosubmit.com/2012/04/25/should-rural-kids-be-allowed-to-work-on-farms-ranches/

Keeping America Beautiful.....

I haven't done any posts on monthly holidays lately, so I thought maybe I should look up and see what was I might have missed for April.  I found that April is "Keep America Beautiful" month, which I do have to be careful, because while I love this earth we love on and want to keep it beautiful, I have a hard time with extremist organizations that think that keeping it beautiful means 100% 'green.'

Green is actually my favorite color, and the sign of life, living and growing, and when you are a raised in agriculture, I think that there is nothing more beautiful and amazing than the green of spring, of fields changing daily from brown to green and the sound of sprinklers chugging through those fields.

So, as we finish up this last week of April, I wanted to acknowledge the Farmers and Producers of American Agriculture that do so much to keep America Beautiful and Green.


April is also National Garden Month.....BIG SIGH!  Is it time already?  Well, with the weather we have had this last week, it sure feels that way, but the snow the week before still makes me doubt 'weather' or not we will be planting on time this year or not--the last two years have been later and later for planting, so we shall see, but it is still time to start thinking about it!

'Spring' Cleaning....

Every year the Panaca Spring is drained for week.  It is usually around Spring Break, which means it isn't always warm, and it is usually always windy.  This year, it was GORGEOUS weather.  Which means a few hours each for a couple of days were spent catching frogs and fish and crawdads by my kids.  They enjoy this one week almost as much as they enjoy the swimming the rest of the year--maybe more because it only comes once and because it isn't always nice enough to play in it some years.  

Bryson looking for frogs for two straight hours.

The mud around some of the edges is GROSS and extremely deep, I didn't get pictures the next day, but Trevin had mud clear up his neck and onto his hair, his clothes were black, and it's a good thing he cleaned off or I might have left 'swamp thing' in the swamp.

My little princess looking for her prince? 

 Yep, pink and bejeweled, or mud-covered and frog-catching, she is my little princess.

Today was pretty quiet, there were a few other friends around, but the next day there were lots of people out and we came back after we finished branding cows to let cousin Deegan check it out.  Some people showed up to swim and were absolutely shocked to find it almost empty, once I explained to them that it was normal and temporary, they climbed on in and mentioned at one point that 'it is almost more fun this way!"

The Panaca Spring, looks almost like a river here, and all of that water is springing up from the ground within just a small area.  About 10 million gallons a day of water that averages a temperature of 78 degrees.  In the hot sun you think you'll be cooling off your feet by sticking them in there.  Nope, usually you just get a surprise that the water is about as warm as the air around you.  It also provides not only the town and those with water shares a great source of water, but most of the farmers through the valley have shares.  It is piped out of the spring in a couple of spots and the water and it's warmth travels through them, leaving stripes of green on the dirt above, or paths of thawed snow during the winter.  An oasis in the desert, it was once used as the towns water supply and no swimming was allowed, but that was when my grandparents were younger.  Now, it is the swimming hole for the town, along with many who come from out of town, or out of state to experience it.

A Day (or a few) at the Fair....

So, for all my stressing, worrying, and more stressing, the Fair is over and ALL IS WELL!!  I can say that this was actually a really good experience and the whole week ended up working out well--I managed to find baby-sitters, make it to doctor's appointments, be at the shows, have a fun time with the kids on the rides even in the blustery and sometimes drippy weather.  And while my oldest was selling his lamb, the next two were winning their final gold medals of the wrestling season at a benefit tournament, and learning how to help others that had fallen on hard times, at the same time.  But, I am glad it is over--no more lambs, no more wrestling, no spring sports, just weeds and watering and homework and a few more weeks of school!

So, Here is my oldest in his first stock show, taking fourth place.  The 1st and 2nd  place lambs there to the right also went on to win Grand and Reserve, so it was a tight class and I was pretty darn proud of how well he did.  It is a neat thing when your kids get to enjoy something that you enjoyed so much when you were young, too.

One of these days I am going to teach him how to smile for a camera--but in 9 years of trying, I am still struggling--maybe it's just a 'guy' thing and mom's aren't supposed to understand it!  ;)

In other areas, the Fair was a great success.  I heard today that there were 61,000 people that attended.  The Clark County Farm Bureau does an excellent job with their Ag displays and support of FFA and 4-H kids.  Their newest addition to the Fair is their milk cow--Bessy.  You can see the kids lined up to milk her.  She has a system of water lines that run through her--the kids milk her and the water sprays into a bucket where it circulates back through for a continual cycle.  Fortunately, she does not come with flies or tail whipping, either, or they might not have enjoyed it as much.  

My kids loved it.  My Daughter talked about it over and over.  My hubby would like to see them milking the real thing, in our back yard--Maybe when fuel prices get a bit higher and we can't ever leave home again, then maybe will I agree, but just finding someone to feed calves and horses and chickens is enough of a trial when leaving for a day or two, let alone finding someone to milk a cow.  I know, I know, keep a calf on her, but still , I'm holding out for now.

And here is our Media Director for the Nevada Farm Bureau, Zach Allen, working hard at the Farm Bureau booth--he stayed busy all week and did a great job promoting Ag in our state.  Nice booth with great Ag products from all over the state!

And here are the great women of Farm Bureau with fun facts and games!!  Cindy Hardy, Irene Barlow, Stephanie Bunker, all worked hard for Clark County Farm Bureau, while our Field Representative for the State, Stephanie Licht, is always busy and hard at work!

Clark County also sponsored a dinner for their YF&R, with incoming Chair, Micah Leatham working hard at recruiting several new members.  Then it was off to the rodeo for the evening.  So, THANK YOU to Jim Hardy for his work on the evening and efforts to bring it together and THANK YOU to Clark County Farm Bureau for sponsoring it.  THANK YOU to Blake Stratton for the past few years he has spent as the Chair of YF&R in their county and the time and effort he has put in there.  Keep up the good work down there, Clark County, we are proud of your time and efforts that make this such a great fair for so many that might not get a taste of Farm life otherwise.  

4-H and Nevada Dairy Council always had great informative Ag booths.  Of course, my oldest and little sis were enjoy the butter-carving (playing) contest.  At least until mom dragged them off for the livestock sell.

And the show is done, the sell is over, we rode the rides, saw the booths, had lots of fun, but a big sigh of relief comes at the end.  So, one last thank you to Uncle Al for all his great help at the show and all his dedicated years of service to the 4-H and FFA kids his has helped, from his own family, to many, many more.  

Hope you all enjoyed the fair, and if you missed it--well, maybe we will see you there next year!!

Last Minute to Prepare for the Fair.....

So, tomorrow the big event arrives--the Clark County Fair opens up.  Today I sent my oldest to weigh-in his lamb for his very first livestock show.  This last week has been a rush of getting ready.  I had forgotten how much time and effort went into the Clark County Junior Livestock Show, but of course, I only showed there once, my senior year--and that's been a few years.  I am hoping this will be a good experience for him, but by the time we finished all of his recordbook, and I have finagled how to get down there and where to stay, and what to do with the other three for a day while dad is still at work, I was ready to pull my hair out!

My boys have been working with their lambs since the beginning of October--only one is old enough to show, but he had an alternate lamb, so his little brother was there helping for all those months--which does not make him very happy since he doesn't get to actually do any showing.  The thing is, he is a natural, and I am just hoping we don't wear him out before he is old enough to actually show.  The age limits frustrate me a bit.  I started showing when I was 8 years old.  I remember very well, because I had two older siblings showing that I couldn't wait to join.  Now they have to be 9 by January first.  I spent the majority of my years showing at the Southwest Utah Show, or occasionally at a Beaver County Fair.  We usually each had two lambs and my brother always had a steer--I often wonder how my parents kept up with it all--of course, that show was several days shorter and more condensed--not to mention we usually had lambs donated from my Grandpa, so we didn't have the added cost of buying the lamb.  It was always one of my favorite events of the year, even if it meant lots of walking of lambs even when we didn't want to.  Now, other rules have changed and we aren't able to compete at both shows, the Southwest Utah and the Clark, which is another frustration for the few family's who work so hard to support their kids in these endeavors--it is a long way and a lot of work to get  to either of these, let alone to go further, so it is sad that there aren't more options.  

So, I am anxious to see how my son does tomorrow in his Market Class.  I had hoped over the years that we would get to this point, but a few things in the past year made me wonder.  My Uncle Al Cox was always one of our biggest helps and supports getting ready for the shows in my youth, and since my boys have been tiny, him and my aunt Joyce have been waiting for them to be old enough to show.  Then, unexpectedly, my aunt Joyce passed away last summer.  I really thought that maybe without their support it would be too much to take on--I can handle my horses, cows and chickens, but I would definitely need help getting a lamb to the show.  I didn't know if Uncle Al would be up to it.  I should have known better.  He loves the lambs.  He LOVES the livestock show, the kids, and sure enough, by fall he came to us and asked if we were up for it. So, after My son committed, and my Hubby, too, he helped us find the lamb (s)--he couldn't choose just one. ;)  So, he has been there, teaching, helping, training,and I think that it has been a very good thing for him to do--to keep him busy and involved in a world that he loves.  That in itself makes the work and time very worth it, though I am still hoping that it is a good experience for my son--especially since he had to miss the county spelling bee in order to go--he has been in the top two or three of his grade every year for three years, so he was a bit devastated over missing that to show.  At the same time he has big dreams of showing a goat next year, maybe a pig, and definitely a steer sometime--okay, kid, give your mom a bit of a break!!

Dinner in Elko with Trent Loos, Radio Host

If you are in the area next week and looking for a great night out, here is your chance!!  This comes from Great Basin College:

Come one, come all! GBC Aggies Club and the Elko County Farm Bureau have teamed up to present Trent Loos on Saturday April 14th. The event starts with social hour at 5:00pm, a tri-tip dinner catered by Elko's newest restaurant McAdoo's at 6:00pm, and Trent's speech entitled "Producing Food in a You Tube Society."

The event is taking place in the GBC Solarium in Elko, Nevada. Dinner tickets are $25 per person or $20 for 4-H and FFA members. Please buy your dinner tickets by April 11th from the GBC controller's office, or RSVP to Tracy Shane (753-2344) by April 11th and purchase tickets at the door. During dinner, GBC students will be presenting the results of their research on various natural resources topics. GBC Aggies Club students will also be selling sweatshirts at the event.

If you don't want to join us for dinner, you can come for free at 7:00pm and be entertained and inspired by Trent. He'll be selling and signing his new book, "The Best of Trent." Mr. Loos was raised on a farm in Illinois where he got his start in raising hogs at a young age. He and his wife Kelli now own and operate a ranch in central Nebraska where they raise primarily purebred Limousin and Angus cattle, train horses, and raise enough hogs to be delivering some feeder pigs to the Ruby Mountain FFA chapter members. These pigs will be used in student's supervised agriculture experience projects and will be raised for the show and sale in July. Loos hosts a radio show called Loos Tales that airs on over 100 stations across the nation. If you haven't seen him in person before, most folks find that his sense of humor and interesting way of presenting facts will make you think differently about agriculture. We hope that you'll come join us for a night of learning and entertainment.

Please pass this on to anyone you think that might be interested,

Thanks,

Tracy

Tracy Shane
Agriculture Professor

BAIS Natural Resources Program Supervisor
Lundberg, Room 109B

Great Basin College
1500 College Parkway
Elko, NV 89801
775-753-2344
775-738-8771 fax
tracyb@gwmail.gbcnv.edu

http://www2.gbcnv.edu/agriculture/

Dairy News for Nevada

I get email updates from various Ag news resources and today I found this article about plans to build a whole-milk powder plant in Fallon.  From what I am hearing this is a great boost and opportunity for area and state dairy producers.  Check it out and tell me what you think!!

Dairy Talk | Dairy Today

Young Farmers and Ranchers - America's Heartland

This is a great video from America's Heartland that showcases quite a few YF&R members from around the country--we were shown it on our tour buses in Michigan and then they put it online after we were home.  I thought it was really neat because I have come to know quite a few of the people showcased--some who are our close neighbors in Utah, some who I have gotten to know from serving together as state chairs.  Anyway, if you have a few minutes, it is fun to watch and see the diversity of American Young Farmer and Ranchers and at the same time, the similarities.  The Sawyers served as my Area Representatives for the last two on the National Committee.  The Coxes we have been friends with since we met them at a National Conference in Sacramento in 2009.  The Christiansen's are our neighbors across the state line--just a few weeks before I watched this video, I made salsa with some of their hydroponic tomatoes.  We met them at our first national conference in 2007.  I actually just met Brandon from the Batey farms this year at the conference in our state chair session.  And, of course, Chris Chinn was out national chair for YF&R a couple of years ago and has been a keynote speaker at our meetings before.  Farm Bureau makes the world a smaller place, and has really opened my eyes to the diversity of Ag in our nation.

YF&R Conference 2012 (Part 3--Grand Rapids)

So, here is the last of my report on the YF&R National Conference for 2012.  Basically, it is just the leftovers, a little bit of what we saw outside of the conference.  A lot of times, between the conference and the travel time, there isn't any time left for sight-seeing, but our 'Grand Finale' event was at the Public Museum, which gave us a little tour and taste of Michigan, and across the river was the Gerald Ford Presidential Museum.

Dinner at the museum, on all three levels, people visiting,  and checking out the exhibits.  They actually had kind of a scavenger hunt through the museum and if you completed it you could turn in your paper for door prizes.

Grand Rapids was actually the furniture center of the US for a time, and this was an exhibit of some of their incredible quality of furniture that was made here.

Just another cool exhibit.  The Museum there was great for all ages and had a lot of really fun sites.

MICHIGAN!!  The 'Upper Peninsula" and 'The Hand"

The museum also boasts an antique carousel that has been refinished and is walled on one side by a great view of the Grand River.

The old clock tower from an original courthouse in Grand Rapids, that had a neat story behind it, but I am too slow getting my report done to remember it.

Over the Grand River cross many bridges--we were surprised as we sat at dinner the first night in the motel restaurant and saw people--in the wind and flurrying snow--fishing from the bridge!  This seemed crazy to us, as cars and buses roared by, the building all around--unfortunately, we didn't actually see anyone catch anything.

Grand Rapids is named after the River that flows through it, the Grand River.  Early settlers tried to find ways to slow down the rapids because the river dropped so many feet in such a short distance that it was very full of rapids.

We stayed at the Amway Grand Plaza, which was at one point in the early 1900's ranked as one of the top 10 hotels in the United States.  The tower behind it has been added since it was bought and restored by Amway Corp.  We were in the older part and it was a very neat and historic hotel to stay in.

At one time, this was the lobby to the motel, and the ceiling was the, or one of the largest gold leaf ceilings in the world.

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Since our flight was later in the day, we were able to visit the museum before we left.  I am kind of a history buff and  recently read a historical biography about Harry S. Truman, and was so disappointed that for all my trips to Kansas City, I had never been to the Truman Library or historical sites, so I was glad to go to the Ford museum and learn more about another one of our President's past.

A little piece of the Berlin Wall.

A replica of the Oval Office from Ford's time there.  

Another bridge across the Grand River.  The building on the left was where the Public Museum is housed.

A few more fishermen in the cold morning on the Grand River.

I know that you couldn't have enjoyed my trip as much as I did, but maybe next year you can be apart of it!  See you in Phoenix in 2013!!