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Speaker 1
every second that we have invested in this organization, we have been given back in one way or the other,
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Speaker 1
multiple, multiple times over.
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Speaker 3
Welcome to the Louisiana Farm Bureau podcast. I'm Allie Shipley, and we are so excited to continue our celebration of National Women's History Month and highlighting some of the amazing women in Louisiana agriculture and all they've done for the industry and for the Louisiana Farm Bureau Federation.
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Speaker 3
Today we are in Evangeline Parish. Bill Platt, to be specific.
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Speaker 3
And we are at the home of Hill Manual, who is a member, along with her husband. Clint is a member of our Young Farmers and Ranchers Committee. And a long resume of ag involvement. But I'll let you get more into that. But thank you so much for having us today.
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Speaker 1
Well, thank you all for coming. We, I call our little piece of heaven here at Grand Central Station because we always have people in and out.
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Speaker 2
All the time, which anyone who farms probably can sympathize with that so filled up.
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Speaker 3
My mom used to laugh that she was going to put a ring doorbell at the end of our driveway, because, so she could know when people were coming in and out.
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Speaker 1
Absolutely. You know, have your ears open for open gates and people coming down the driveway.
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Speaker 3
That's hilarious. And I probably should have said, we're in your pasture, not your home, but we are right outside of your home. It's one in the same, of course.
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Speaker 1
Yeah. We have a beautiful, ten acre homestead where we finish our calves here, and then our bigger pastures, are, as you can.
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Speaker 2
See from the camera, which is just right on the other side of.
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Speaker 1
The, tree line.
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Speaker 3
We are all in the thick of it. We were really in the element today. But why don't you tell us a little bit about yourself? I don't want to give you a resume because it's quite lengthy and quite detail. And you've been all over the place and done a lot of things. So why don't you just tell us a little bit about who you are, what you do, and how you have ended up right here?
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Speaker 1
You know, I ask myself that question every day.
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Speaker 2
Honestly, I, well, I guess I'll.
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Speaker 1
Start from the beginning if there is such a thing, but, I'm originally from Baton Rouge, East Baton Rouge Parish, so very much, you know, suburban, suburban, urban, you know, subdivision life did not have a history of agriculture, outside of, you know, my grandparents probably would be the closest generation, where my grandfather worked. His dad was a manager on a plantation in Morganza.
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Speaker 1
But. And that was kind of this quasi story, I.
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Speaker 2
Guess you could say. But it wasn't something.
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Speaker 1
That, like, we intimately felt close to. But my grandfather was a wonderful man who had, incredible stories of life growing up on a plantation, and working at a very young age was one of several children, over a dozen children, if I'm not mistaken.
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Speaker 1
so we had, like, these stories, you know, and I think that that's something really cool about agriculture is that it doesn't take long before you find a story in a family.
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Speaker 2
he.
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Speaker 1
Was one of the children that moved to the big city to get, you know, career opportunities and things like that after the service. And, raised two children there, and I was raised in Baton Rouge as well.
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Speaker 1
grew up that way. Never had an idea that I was going to become an agriculturalist. Matter of fact, my family were are entrepreneurs and marketing, and, I thought that I was just going to take a cushy PR job.
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Speaker 2
In the city. And one of the many, you know, agencies.
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Speaker 1
That are available there, and went to school for public relations,
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Speaker 2
But while I was in high school.
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Speaker 1
Again,
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Speaker 1
a very large public school, Woodlawn High, I had the opportunity to work with a, young teacher who wanted to charter an SSH program, which I had only heard about, like in songs like.
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Speaker 2
Like, oh, this is a real thing. That's so funny. Yeah.
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Speaker 3
I've never thought about it that way, but it is a lot.
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Speaker 2
Of songs and songs in theory. I was that.
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Speaker 1
Girl in high school that, like, wanted to be a part of such a thing as possible and, like, take advantages of many opportunities which, looking back on it was such a great thing to do because I don't really I didn't realize how many opportunities I had that most kids don't. Just in a public school setting. So that individual, that teacher ended up being could learn.
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Speaker 2
Who.
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Speaker 3
I did not know the story till the other day. If you're wondering who Kayla's unit is, just go back.
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Speaker 2
A few.
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Speaker 3
At the center that Carl interviewed him during National FFA week.
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Speaker 2
Yeah. So Cade was, I mean, if it.
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Speaker 1
Wasn't his first year teaching, maybe it was his second, so early 20s. I was, you know, 16 or 17, and I knew everything. I knew everybody about the school. So we kind of worked well together in that sense. And he was just I mean, if you if you've ever met Cade, you know, he's diehard FFA,
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Speaker 1
and his upbringing.
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Speaker 2
Was from the.
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Speaker 1
Beginning, like, you know, almost more or less since, you know, early high school, he knew that that's what he was going to do. And so, I, I like passionate people. And so, I had the opportunity to work with him and charter that that chapter. We kind of stirred the pot a little bit.
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Speaker 2
We were on the we're on the bunch of city kids.
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Speaker 1
Were we placed at the state livestock competition our first year?
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Speaker 2
Oh, yeah.
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Speaker 1
Yeah, that was an experience. No regrets. I still have the.
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Speaker 2
Pin that was dropping the pins.
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Speaker 2
And, again, anybody who knows me knows me.
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Speaker 1
I'm pretty competitive.
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Speaker 3
We were just discussing that. Okay.
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Speaker 2
So, this was.
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Speaker 1
Right up my alley, that.
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Speaker 2
It was.
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Speaker 1
A perfect combination between professionalism and communications, which this was before ad communications was really a thing. Right. That was my city. It was ad communications before it was a thing. And agriculture, which. But I always say I fell in love with the culture of agriculture first, because I can't say I grew up on a farm or with animals or showing livestock or what have you.
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Speaker 2
So I fell in love with the.
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Speaker 1
Culture and frankly, the morals and values that agriculture teaches that you get taught in the FFA. Or I was anyway right. And,
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Speaker 1
So I appreciated the competition aspect. And I was taught so many values that I wouldn't have gotten otherwise fast forwarded to college. I thought that I had kind of left that part of my life behind. Because it just wasn't. It was a great experience to develop the communication side of of what I wanted to pursue.
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Speaker 1
And I just didn't see a path forward in agriculture with the resources that.
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Speaker 2
Might be available to me.
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Speaker 1
But my freshman year, at the University of Louisiana-Lafayette, I always say I met a man with a thick beard and a thick accent.
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Speaker 3
I was like, I work into this story.
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Speaker 2
So it didn't take long. Before I found one of those, of course, Lafayette.
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Speaker 1
Was such a small town to me, though. Like, I didn't realize moving there, that that was the big city for a lot of people that go to UL or at the time it was. So that was a that was an experience, a culture shock in.
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Speaker 2
Itself that I was like.
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Speaker 1
Y'all are worried about the traffic.
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Speaker 2
What's happened?
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Speaker 3
Y'all been over the bridge?
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Speaker 2
Yeah, exactly. So,
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Speaker 1
And like I said, I met Clint my freshman year, first semester, and we met in the library. I mean, just so cliche. But he starts telling me, you know, we get to talking, we can, you know, close our textbooks. Well, I closed my textbook.
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Speaker 2
Let's be clear.
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Speaker 1
Everybody knows. Clint knows he didn't close it. But,
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Speaker 1
you know, we just started talking, and he starts telling about this life that he's lived. First time with that, of course. In this community called Lobo. And he grew up with horses, cows, and and I, I know about cows.
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Speaker 2
And so I, I was FFA and he's like really like, yeah, this is acting up. Yeah. And so we had a lot to talk about. But not.
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Speaker 1
Just the livestock aspect and the agriculture aspect. But he grew up with these values and experiences.
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Speaker 1
This network of, of people and culture that.
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Speaker 2
I had read about. Right, like the.
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Speaker 1
True Cajun country. But and I knew that my family had not been that removed from, but something that I had already aspired for, but just didn't think it was going to be something that I could achieve.
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Speaker 1
you know, the joke is, of course, that now, Clint will never admit this, but.
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Speaker 2
I'll tell just because it's just you and me and nobody else is.
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Speaker 3
Watching. This is not on the record.
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Speaker 2
I went I went back to my dorm and I was like, well, that's.
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Speaker 1
That's how you meet the man you're going to marry. Like, I knew.
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Speaker 2
I knew we were going to, you know, do.
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Speaker 1
The happily ever after thing, which is so.
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Speaker 2
Cheesy.
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Speaker 1
But it's true. And then we lived life and fast forward at that point, we I graduated in three years, three and a half years. With my public relations degree in business. He graduated a couple years in. He was already a few years in, in engineering, and we said we were going to go back and whatever it took, we were going to, you know, take the jobs that it took and do whatever it took to build a family around agriculture.
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Speaker 1
And that's what we did. So now we're here.
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Speaker 2
And it was it. It happened.
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Speaker 1
Very quickly. So from that day, three years almost exactly to that day we got married. And, within the first year of our marriage, we started our farm. We, we bought the farm, got.
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Speaker 2
Pregnant, bought it, bought our home and wasted.
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Speaker 3
Yeah.
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Speaker 2
We I'm not saying this was all planned, but it happened.
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Speaker 1
Very quickly in our first year, we started our farm, bought our cattle, bought our homestead. We started renting the property that we originally was, were purchasing or we originally purchased. We gutted that home like it was just a lot.
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Speaker 2
And then we and so we did.
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Speaker 1
Test forward and you know, we've been very happy ever since, obviously professionally at that point, I was also in that first year, I was also given the opportunity to be the CEO of Saint Landry Parish Chamber of Commerce.
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Speaker 2
Awesome.
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Speaker 3
So, see, I didn't even.
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Speaker 2
Know it wasn't it. Yeah.
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Speaker 1
So my first big girl job after graduating, more or less, I worked for a local radio station, which was my thing. Like, my parents had worked in radio for years, so that was like.
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Speaker 3
See also I didn't know that you knew every podcast.
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Speaker 2
So I grew.
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Speaker 1
Up working in radio, basically, like when I was a kid, kid. And so that was kind of a natural fit for me. And then, I was given part of the job was to be a liaison to the Chamber of Commerce in Saint Landry. So when that job became available, I was only 22.
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Speaker 2
And so that's.
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Speaker 3
A lot of life.
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Speaker 2
Yeah, I a long time, but I think I was only 22 and, I was the youngest.
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Speaker 1
CEO like ever in Louisiana.
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Speaker 2
Chambers of commerce, which was wild.
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Speaker 1
But we grew that organization. Incredibly like financially and membership wise. We just grew the organization. We became within my first five years. Yeah, within first three years, we became chamber of the year for the state of Louisiana. We we met our 100 year anniversary, that's all. And it was an incredible experience. And again, I got to.
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Speaker 1
Saint Landry is such an agricultural rich community. And it's not I mean, it's very large as well.
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Speaker 2
So it's not far from where I live. So I got to.
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Speaker 1
Get even more in touch with the agricultural community there because AG is so important to Saint Landry Parish.
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Speaker 1
It's the equine capital of the parish or of the state and, you know, your home country and all of that.
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Speaker 2
So I.
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Speaker 1
I was like, yeah. And I have a farm and, you know, so I got to really meshed the best of both worlds. I got to mesh my ag background in life with.
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Speaker 2
The executive side of.
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Speaker 1
My background. So I did that for several years, maybe 6 or 7. And then, I was given the opportunity to move to the FFA.
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Speaker 3
So full circle moment there. Yeah.
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Speaker 2
Yeah, I got a call from this.
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Speaker 1
Ad teacher that I knew.
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Speaker 3
Goes back, kid.
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Speaker 2
Yeah, it goes back to Cade.
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Speaker 1
Got a call from an AG teacher.
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Speaker 2
Who.
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Speaker 1
Now had become the.
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Speaker 1
executive vice secretary. Maybe. But the number two for the state, for the Louisiana FFA. And he was doing all things chapter based. Right? He was running the convention. He was managing chapters, that kind of thing. And he knew that the foundation, as a nonprofit, needed someone who had experience managing organizations.
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Speaker 1
So, at this point, I was pregnant with my second, and.
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Speaker 2
I told him that, but,
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Speaker 1
He said it was worth the interview. So, I was kind of at that point, where I was looking at what are my state opportunities without leaving.
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Speaker 2
The farm because.
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Speaker 1
You know, we had a thriving, this was during Covid two or right after Covid. So we had a thriving direct to consumer beef operation at this point, that was doing really, really well. We had expanded the homestead to other projects, and I wanted to be home for that. And so I didn't know how I was going to take a Baton Rouge job and, and do both.
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Speaker 1
But God took care of me again. I got the best of both worlds again. So, the I was at the FFA for a couple of years and, was able to grow that organization financially, significantly. And earlier, maybe a year ago now, I guess it was I kind of had gotten to that point where we had grown our operations so much that it it didn't really make sense for me to kind of split my time.
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Speaker 1
So we were I'm able to stay home and work full time on the operation. And then any free time that I have.
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Speaker 2
Which is limited, I'm able to give back.
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Speaker 1
To community organizations and state organizations like Farm Bureau.
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Speaker 3
And you've put a lot of time on that.
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Speaker 2
Or that is a very long introduction. That is not.
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Speaker 3
That is exactly what we're here to. That is awesome. And I learned so much from that. And ironically, I think at some point in this, we said there weren't really that was before. And communications are a thing. You had quite the.
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Speaker 2
The ag commission.
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Speaker 3
Resume. But that's.
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Speaker 2
Not the into that.
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Speaker 3
For it not being a thing. Yeah. So let's kind of talk a little bit about Clint, because you talk about how y'all have a thriving farm operation here, but Clint is still working a full time 9 to 5.
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Speaker 1
Correct? I think that we make up the majority of agriculturalists or producers, especially livestock producers in Louisiana when at least one of us or for most of our career and AG, both of us have worked full time jobs. And he has he's worked a full time, 40 plus hour a week job as an engineer. Since we started, now, fortunately, again, living in a small town and taking the jobs, engineering jobs in a small town.
00;14;05;29 - 00;14;13;07
Speaker 1
He doesn't live far or he doesn't work far. I should say he doesn't live far from his job. He's ten minutes away. So when the cows do get out every.
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Speaker 2
Once he has.
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Speaker 3
Is a real.
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Speaker 2
Thing. That it happens. It never ceases to amaze me. But you know what?
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Speaker 1
Since I've been home, I've got the cows every time.
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Speaker 3
Hey, there we go.
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Speaker 1
I mean, I know I don't look at today, but if these cows got out, we would be set. We'd be okay.
00;14;27;28 - 00;14;29;27
Speaker 3
See? Women and egg. They're a special.
00;14;29;27 - 00;14;37;13
Speaker 1
Breed. And I'm so proud of me again. As much as I loved the culture of agriculture, that makes me like and I like, I have to complain about it.
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Speaker 2
Like I have to tell.
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Speaker 1
Clint, like, oh, I had to let your cows.
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Speaker 3
But I think that's like a rite of passage in there. Like sometimes I'm like, you know, we love it. We love it. So much we have to complain about it a little bit so people don't know.
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Speaker 2
How good it is. Exactly. Absolutely. So I learned a.
00;14;49;28 - 00;14;54;22
Speaker 1
Little bit and I say I let you cows back in or whatever. He's like, did you let him out? I'm like, maybe.
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Speaker 2
Yeah, maybe.
00;14;55;18 - 00;14;59;01
Speaker 3
Yes. No. Are his brothers buttered or whose beef is beef? Right.
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Speaker 2
Absolutely. So yeah.
00;15;00;18 - 00;15;16;24
Speaker 1
Clint works full time. And we've just been very fortunate to have opportunities that are close to the to the farm. But he I mean, we're very much a working to farm family. We all of our spare time goes to that. You know, we don't really take vacations.
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Speaker 2
Unless it's with Farm Bureau, and it's not really vacations. It's. Yeah, we we we.
00;15;22;01 - 00;15;35;13
Speaker 1
But the thing about Clint and it's his engineering personality is that. And and I'm the same way too. And I think it goes back to me being, you know, strategic and business focused is we do everything like strategically.
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Speaker 3
There's always a goal.
00;15;36;14 - 00;15;36;23
Speaker 2
Yeah.
00;15;36;23 - 00;15;52;22
Speaker 1
And there's always a big why. Yeah. An ally. Our big lie is to get our kids to heaven and to get each other to heaven. Like at the end of the day, we just so happen to think that agriculture is a really solid route to take to do that. And so, yeah, we have to put food on the table and.
00;15;52;25 - 00;15;55;13
Speaker 2
Put food on other people's tables.
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Speaker 1
But, that's our big why. And, you know, especially in hard years that maybe we don't do as well or we're not able to complete all of the projects on the farm that we wanted to get done. We ask ourselves, okay, but did we get closer to our big why? And that that typically makes us sleep at.
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Speaker 2
Night a little bit.
00;16;13;07 - 00;16;29;13
Speaker 3
But I think that's so important. And I think a lot of people, and I would probably agree with that. It's it's not easy. We were just joking about complaining about it, but it is hard. There's tough times. There's no constants. It's all unpredictable and it's out of our hands. But there's a greater lifestyle in it all. Yeah, I kind of want to talk about why?
00;16;29;13 - 00;16;47;27
Speaker 3
Because I think this is important because sometimes in Farm Bureau we kind of are like, why? It's volunteering. It's time. It's a volunteer position. It takes time, it takes energy. So why especially if somebody obviously you didn't come up an age. So you're not a generational Farm Bureau member, which is a case for a lot of our members.
00;16;47;29 - 00;16;59;07
Speaker 3
Can you kind of talk about your Farm Bureau story and how you ended up involved in that organization, and why you and Clint continue to dedicate time away from your family and away from your farm to that organization?
00;16;59;09 - 00;16;59;22
Speaker 2
Yeah.
00;16;59;23 - 00;17;05;18
Speaker 1
So we were Farm Bureau members from the start. Unfortunately, we weren't as involved from the start as.
00;17;05;18 - 00;17;05;27
Speaker 2
As we.
00;17;06;03 - 00;17;08;25
Speaker 1
As we are now. And I only say unfortunately, because
00;17;08;25 - 00;17;30;29
Speaker 1
every second that we have invested in this organization, we have been given back in one way or the other, multiple, multiple times over. So, yeah, I mean, we were members of the Farm Bureau Federation because that's Clint's family had always been, but we just kind of were inactive members, which would probably be a majority of people, and producers.
00;17;31;01 - 00;17;32;20
Speaker 1
That was a mistake.
00;17;32;22 - 00;17;39;07
Speaker 2
And that was that early we were running and gunning. No, we were a little busy. I don't know if we would have been able to you had we known the opportunities.
00;17;39;07 - 00;17;40;16
Speaker 2
and I was we had been.
00;17;40;16 - 00;17;44;00
Speaker 1
Involved in other professional organizations too, but nothing
00;17;44;00 - 00;17;56;08
Speaker 1
compared to the quality of professional development that this organization, Wyeth and or and Farm Bureau Federation has provided could compare. So we were I'm trying to think of which came first, the chicken.
00;17;56;08 - 00;18;00;04
Speaker 2
Or the egg kind of a thing probably.
00;18;00;07 - 00;18;06;25
Speaker 1
Started with either, Robert Duncan or Richard Fontana or maybe both at the same time. Two. Very two.
00;18;06;27 - 00;18;08;17
Speaker 2
Yeah, yeah. One of the.
00;18;08;17 - 00;18;09;01
Speaker 1
Two.
00;18;09;02 - 00;18;09;21
Speaker 2
So we will.
00;18;09;21 - 00;18;11;11
Speaker 3
Tell whichever one you give credit.
00;18;11;13 - 00;18;13;05
Speaker 2
Again, this is just between you and me.
00;18;13;08 - 00;18;14;11
Speaker 3
We'll see what one's listening.
00;18;14;12 - 00;18;15;24
Speaker 2
Yeah, but I was I.
00;18;15;24 - 00;18;37;29
Speaker 1
Was obviously more in the circle with my position in the FFA. We had, you know, gone to different meetings and things like that that just didn't have the time to dedicate to something else. And probably as I was in more circles around the FFA, I realized that we were missing out on some serious opportunities, for professional development, for personal development, for just networking and knowledge.
00;18;37;29 - 00;18;55;02
Speaker 1
Like, even if you don't dive headfirst, the most tangible things that we've gotten is from conversations like this where it's like, oh, you didn't know that there's this program or do you all do you all file this form this way? You know, little, little things that Clint's like, I've been doing this for.
00;18;55;04 - 00;18;57;06
Speaker 2
I've been doing this my whole life. And I didn't know that.
00;18;57;09 - 00;19;17;12
Speaker 1
That was an opportunity that we could be having. So, on top of that. Yeah. So I guess Robert was probably more of the, hey, you know, as a family, this has he said we're family oriented. He's a wonderful man. Family oriented. This is something that could benefit your family. And then Richard knew me more from the FFA background.
00;19;17;14 - 00;19;18;11
Speaker 1
And he's a neighbor.
00;19;18;11 - 00;19;23;15
Speaker 2
He doesn't like farm. So he knew my family at this point. And,
00;19;23;17 - 00;19;30;18
Speaker 1
So he, you know, he was like, hey, I want you to to get into the competition aspect, knowing that I'm relatively competitive.
00;19;30;20 - 00;19;31;17
Speaker 2
And of.
00;19;31;17 - 00;19;31;28
Speaker 1
Course, in.
00;19;31;29 - 00;19;37;01
Speaker 3
Real life you're very competitive. We've had it on it a few times, and it's a common theme here.
00;19;37;03 - 00;19;38;14
Speaker 1
I could ask Richard for.
00;19;38;15 - 00;19;39;01
Speaker 2
No.
00;19;39;03 - 00;19;49;13
Speaker 1
I remember when he asked me the first time and I laughed because I was like, that's so embarrassing. I said, I would never, like nearly, you know, x years old. I said, I'm way too old to.
00;19;49;13 - 00;19;52;11
Speaker 2
Compete in things I said I haven't heated since.
00;19;52;11 - 00;19;53;27
Speaker 3
I never say never.
00;19;53;28 - 00;19;56;22
Speaker 2
State livestock, you know? So I said, no, I.
00;19;56;22 - 00;19;59;08
Speaker 1
Could never do that. You know.
00;19;59;10 - 00;20;00;00
Speaker 2
I don't have.
00;20;00;00 - 00;20;06;00
Speaker 1
Anything to prove, you know, whatever it might be. And, he was like, I know, but I really want, you know, he's from Evangeline Parish.
00;20;06;00 - 00;20;08;08
Speaker 2
This is before he was president.
00;20;08;11 - 00;20;14;11
Speaker 1
And he was like, I really want somebody to represent my parish, and I want you to do it now. I was like, at this point now it's like, who are.
00;20;14;13 - 00;20;16;28
Speaker 2
You going to say no to Richard for now? So that got.
00;20;16;28 - 00;20;35;24
Speaker 1
Me into the competition side of wife and or when I said yes to discussion meat. Well, then he ran with that and then it was like, well, you got to be on the, state committee for Wyeth honor to represent district five. There was a vacancy for that year. So in our first year, I competed at Discussion Meat.
00;20;35;26 - 00;20;40;05
Speaker 2
I won, which was unexpected.
00;20;40;07 - 00;20;47;27
Speaker 1
And then in that same year, we started our first term, me and Clint started our first term as district directors for Wyeth. And, so really jumped in.
00;20;47;28 - 00;20;58;09
Speaker 2
Yeah, but we do. But this is kind of a I'm saying that competitive and slow or without intent and full intention.
00;20;58;11 - 00;21;16;19
Speaker 1
But again, we've we've looked at it every time something comes up. And again, at first maybe it was just we're going to sit on this committee, but this committee presents opportunities. And so every time, an opportunity is presented within Farm Bureau, we look at it and we have an important conversation as spouses and partners. And we say, okay, is this worth our time?
00;21;16;22 - 00;21;26;12
Speaker 1
For example, is going to Baton Rouge to the capital is to advocate for agriculture. Is that worth our time? Is it worth my time? And it's.
00;21;26;15 - 00;21;27;26
Speaker 2
Proven that, I mean.
00;21;28;00 - 00;21;31;05
Speaker 1
We we see the dividends from it for our family.
00;21;31;08 - 00;21;33;21
Speaker 2
For our community and, and and.
00;21;33;25 - 00;21;34;21
Speaker 3
For the people that are not.
00;21;34;21 - 00;21;35;00
Speaker 2
There.
00;21;35;05 - 00;22;09;05
Speaker 1
And that's the other thing. So one of what's equally as fulfilling as, let's say, going to Washington, D.C., and interacting with people that are making who who have the power to make a difference for communities like Evangeline Parish as rewarding as that is. In the same month, I got in a truck with a man who sells registered brangus or registered Angus bulls to buy a new bull and I'm talking to him about how we're about to go to DC, and he's telling me this 80 year old farmer is telling me how grateful he is that I'm going because he can't.
00;22;09;07 - 00;22;11;09
Speaker 3
And that's that's huge.
00;22;11;12 - 00;22;13;15
Speaker 1
Like one of my I just got goosebumps.
00;22;13;17 - 00;22;15;22
Speaker 2
But like but like that.
00;22;15;22 - 00;22;23;21
Speaker 1
To me is where it all comes together. Like, why was I given this opportunity? I know this sounds mushy, but like, why was I given this opportunity.
00;22;23;23 - 00;22;24;23
Speaker 2
To use.
00;22;24;26 - 00;22;38;08
Speaker 1
Communication skills for AG when I was 15? You know, if it wasn't for that, because I know that not whether it be time commitment or just personal ability or what have.
00;22;38;08 - 00;22;42;07
Speaker 3
You done something that's comforting. Everybody's not everybody can go to the Capitol and talk to, you.
00;22;42;07 - 00;22;42;24
Speaker 2
Know, and.
00;22;42;24 - 00;23;02;08
Speaker 1
And again, I said that at the beginning, I took for granted that I had these opportunities when I was younger. And I don't anymore because I realize that there are people who won't be able to do those things. So that's why that's why we always look at evaluating Sarah, we helping ourselves and our big why are we also helping our community.
00;23;02;15 - 00;23;25;09
Speaker 1
And so whether that's going to our police jury and visiting and fussing, maybe even a little bit, or going, I represent Farm Bureau, actually on a, on our parish Economic Development Authority as well, Farm Bureau through our advocacy efforts, Farm Bureau and through great representation, like Rhonda Butler Farm Bureau has a standing seat on our parish Economic Development.
00;23;25;09 - 00;23;35;18
Speaker 3
Authority that talks to the grass roots. Those. Yeah, our parish seats and our parish offices are making huge differences for the people that live here and all of the parishes across the state.
00;23;35;18 - 00;23;40;14
Speaker 1
Yeah. So whether it's at the nation's capital or our parish Kavanaugh affairs seat.
00;23;41;24 - 00;23;46;21
Speaker 1
We see the work and we're happy to do the work because we see the fruit of that work.
00;23;46;21 - 00;24;00;29
Speaker 3
I know a lot of people are thankful for that, for sure. And it is a time commitment. And it's it's a huge time commitment. And we don't take that for granted. And I know so many people are appreciative. We often say, if you farm in or not a Farm Bureau member, you still benefit from Farm Bureau.
00;24;00;29 - 00;24;02;10
Speaker 1
Oh, sure. Absolutely.
00;24;02;10 - 00;24;16;03
Speaker 3
You're helping. Let's talk a little bit about the opportunities you kind of touched on life and and a few of the opportunities since you have Clinton have been on the board. What are some of the things that y'all have gotten to do? What does that position look like? What is what are the things you've got to do since you jumped in head first two years?
00;24;16;03 - 00;24;16;17
Speaker 3
Yeah.
00;24;16;20 - 00;24;17;08
Speaker 2
Let's make it.
00;24;17;16 - 00;24;18;12
Speaker 1
Reiterate that you don't.
00;24;18;12 - 00;24;20;13
Speaker 2
Have to do all the things. I think that's.
00;24;20;13 - 00;24;21;29
Speaker 3
Important, though I do think that's.
00;24;21;29 - 00;24;22;13
Speaker 2
Important to.
00;24;22;13 - 00;24;25;18
Speaker 1
Mention that. Like, you're going to hear the list and you're going to be like.
00;24;25;26 - 00;24;33;16
Speaker 2
I know that I do not want to do I know, I know all these things. That but this is not mandatory, that this is something that we have.
00;24;33;16 - 00;24;53;24
Speaker 1
Evaluated for our family. But yeah, it started of course, with state convention. You go to state convention, you represent your district. We've sat as voting delegates and alternates at state convention. So that's, you know, I mean, it's essential to the to the grassroots effort. Of course you sit we also sit on our parish, parish, Farm bureau, board.
00;24;54;02 - 00;25;07;28
Speaker 1
So we sit those are monthly meetings where we get to tell both sides, right? We get to be the here's what's going on at the state level. But also here's what's going on locally. So I guess that's base level.
00;25;08;01 - 00;25;10;20
Speaker 3
That is the entry point for sure.
00;25;10;23 - 00;25;12;15
Speaker 2
So local.
00;25;12;17 - 00;25;15;11
Speaker 1
Meetings and then state convention, we have a role there.
00;25;15;11 - 00;25;24;16
Speaker 1
Once you get on committee at Weisner, there's a little bit more responsibility associated with convention. You don't have to compete in things, but a lot of committee members like to compete in things. But you.
00;25;24;16 - 00;25;26;16
Speaker 2
Don't have to be a committee member to compete in the.
00;25;26;16 - 00;25;27;01
Speaker 3
Less Mr..
00;25;27;01 - 00;25;30;06
Speaker 2
Richer and less because it allows you to. Then you have to.
00;25;30;09 - 00;25;43;19
Speaker 1
So, yeah, at the parish level, you know, I represented our parish for district or for discussion meat. We won that. So then one of the prizes for winning discussion meat is to go to American Farm Bureau and represent the state of Louisiana,
00;25;43;19 - 00;25;48;00
Speaker 1
which I feel passionate about, representing the state. I love my state.
00;25;48;00 - 00;26;11;13
Speaker 1
I love our state for its agricultural attributes, but for so much, for its historical attributes. So we did that in Salt Lake City. That was a week. So we competed in that. That was an incredible experience for so many reasons. I learned so much. And then, okay, so we came back from that. The next trip was DC.
00;26;11;16 - 00;26;27;29
Speaker 1
So I went by myself. Clint came with me to Salt Lake City, but I went by myself to DC for the first time. And that's pure advocacy. That's working. The whole time we visit with representatives, we talk about issues. If you're a nerd like me, you read the policy book, like cover to cover.
00;26;28;01 - 00;26;29;19
Speaker 2
And then you talk about what Farm.
00;26;29;19 - 00;26;32;20
Speaker 1
Bureau policy with these leaders, and how their.
00;26;32;20 - 00;26;33;04
Speaker 2
Policy.
00;26;33;04 - 00;26;34;03
Speaker 3
Alliance would be.
00;26;34;03 - 00;26;41;24
Speaker 2
So far. And. Well, he's he's gotten a week of it just recently, so he's probably not he's tired of hearing it, but, so went to DC.
00;26;41;24 - 00;27;05;28
Speaker 1
I love I mean, I love policy and politics in any instance. So that's for me is awesome. And then in the early spring, around this time every year, there's either the wife and our, ABF conference or the Fusion conference. Last year we did, the wife in our conference that was in Nebraska, Omaha. So me, Clint and our children or.
00;27;06;00 - 00;27;06;23
Speaker 2
Our two boys.
00;27;06;23 - 00;27;07;07
Speaker 3
Farm Bureau.
00;27;07;07 - 00;27;09;19
Speaker 2
Family, it was and I think it was an unspoken.
00;27;09;19 - 00;27;10;09
Speaker 1
Initiative that.
00;27;10;09 - 00;27;12;08
Speaker 2
All of the wife and arch people, we probably shouldn't.
00;27;12;08 - 00;27;12;25
Speaker 1
Advertise that.
00;27;12;25 - 00;27;14;22
Speaker 2
But,
00;27;14;25 - 00;27;29;06
Speaker 1
We took care of each. I mean, we trust each other. We love each other. We. I mean, it is a family, the wife and our people. We're all going through the same things, even if it's different scales. Don't get me wrong. And we're not fully invested the way that you know, a crawfish or rice farmer might be in a drought year.
00;27;29;08 - 00;27;51;02
Speaker 1
We were, but we were with them for that, and we were there to support them. And if nothing else, just be somebody to talk to you. An advocate for, again, if they can't leave their farms because they're dealing with a drought, we can and we're going to support them in that way. So we did Nebraska. And then the you're kind of slows down just for a second.
00;27;51;09 - 00;27;54;27
Speaker 2
Until we get to and then the convention at the next.
00;27;54;27 - 00;27;57;22
Speaker 1
Convention, I was asked.
00;27;57;24 - 00;27;59;05
Speaker 2
Was asked to complete in.
00;27;59;05 - 00;28;17;04
Speaker 1
Excellence in AG, which is, of course, for individuals who do not make a majority of their income from agriculture production. At the time I didn't, so I was still with the FFA. So I applied for that. That's more of a written application as well as a presentation. But this time I really wanted to do it with Clint, because he's my partner.
00;28;17;04 - 00;28;24;13
Speaker 1
And that was the only downside to discussion meat is I couldn't do it with him. So me and Clint did excellent and AG together.
00;28;24;15 - 00;28;28;11
Speaker 3
We went I competitive spirit. It's addictive.
00;28;28;11 - 00;28;30;12
Speaker 2
It's I don't know I, I almost.
00;28;30;12 - 00;28;30;24
Speaker 1
Yeah.
00;28;30;27 - 00;28;32;25
Speaker 3
I listening to you talk today I can understand I.
00;28;32;25 - 00;28;33;15
Speaker 2
See it now.
00;28;33;17 - 00;28;34;16
Speaker 3
I understand all.
00;28;34;16 - 00;28;35;15
Speaker 2
Of it. But we just I mean.
00;28;35;15 - 00;28;46;08
Speaker 1
The great thing about excellence in agriculture is not about what is. So discussion meat. It's how much you've studied and how much you know and how much you can articulate excellence in AG. It's really just telling your story. And if they like your story, you're good.
00;28;46;10 - 00;28;47;20
Speaker 3
Well, you're good at both of as well.
00;28;47;20 - 00;28;49;10
Speaker 2
So thank you.
00;28;49;13 - 00;28;54;29
Speaker 1
But so we just told our story and we won. And then so that was.
00;28;54;29 - 00;28;56;00
Speaker 2
Last.
00;28;56;02 - 00;29;02;03
Speaker 1
Summer. And then. Yeah, then we went and did it all over again.
00;29;02;06 - 00;29;05;01
Speaker 3
Aren't you flying off tomorrow? What's this area? You'll be there.
00;29;05;01 - 00;29;06;18
Speaker 2
So we did. We did excellence.
00;29;06;18 - 00;29;09;12
Speaker 1
In agriculture this year. It was in. Where were we?
00;29;09;12 - 00;29;10;14
Speaker 2
San Antonio.
00;29;10;16 - 00;29;11;18
Speaker 3
It feels like a lifetime ago.
00;29;11;18 - 00;29;22;17
Speaker 1
Here in San Antonio is a week in San Antonio again. Same thing. Lots of education, an incredible experience. I'm so proud of our state we have. And this isn't also like, I know that we're a lot.
00;29;22;20 - 00;29;24;03
Speaker 2
I think it's important to mention I.
00;29;24;03 - 00;29;38;29
Speaker 1
Know that we're a lot and that not everybody can have the time to dedicate to this. We wouldn't be there if it wasn't for you guys in the staff and the support. Even if that support is like me calling and being like, am I okay?
00;29;38;29 - 00;29;40;07
Speaker 2
Like, is this, am I thinking about.
00;29;40;07 - 00;29;49;19
Speaker 1
This the right way? The support that Megan and the communication staff has given me personally and our family and Nikki and Raquel, who's our.
00;29;49;22 - 00;29;51;20
Speaker 2
Oddly enough, our future is.
00;29;51;23 - 00;29;58;23
Speaker 1
Like that team of people. I feel like our, you know, our family because they care. And I don't think they just care because it's their job. I think they care because they care.
00;29;58;25 - 00;30;00;08
Speaker 3
So I think it goes back to that.
00;30;00;08 - 00;30;00;26
Speaker 1
Culture of.
00;30;00;26 - 00;30;01;06
Speaker 2
Yeah.
00;30;01;06 - 00;30;18;12
Speaker 1
Absolutely. And these aren't people who took the job because they're like, oh, this sounds like a good job. These are people who are rooted in the industry and this is the way they give back to. So, you know, I, I sympathize with that in itself. So, yeah, we we do all the things, but we wouldn't be able to do it without.
00;30;18;15 - 00;30;19;08
Speaker 2
Without you.
00;30;19;08 - 00;30;30;07
Speaker 3
Guys are like the poster child of like these are all the things that you can do. But again, I think it's so important that you mentioned there's a place for everybody, even if you don't have that time, you know, you just have time to stop by your parish meeting. It's still important. And it's.
00;30;30;07 - 00;30;31;01
Speaker 2
Oh yeah.
00;30;31;01 - 00;30;37;12
Speaker 1
And so we are seeing a little bit of that now, and I'm not taking credit for that at all. But we're seeing I think what's honestly I'll.
00;30;37;12 - 00;30;37;27
Speaker 3
Give you a little.
00;30;37;27 - 00;30;38;11
Speaker 1
Bit of credit.
00;30;38;16 - 00;30;39;24
Speaker 3
Are out there. I don't.
00;30;39;26 - 00;30;40;26
Speaker 2
Know, I'm
00;30;40;29 - 00;30;43;12
Speaker 1
We're seeing in the, in the last two years
00;30;43;12 - 00;30;59;04
Speaker 1
more what they would consider young farmers and ranchers coming into our parish meeting. I don't think it's because they're like, oh, look at where Raquel's doing. I think it's because the senior leaders are seeing what we're doing in that meeting. And they're like, man, my nephew, like my nephew could do that.
00;30;59;07 - 00;31;00;18
Speaker 1
And I'm like, yeah, your nephew can.
00;31;00;18 - 00;31;02;03
Speaker 2
Like, you should get him, you know.
00;31;02;10 - 00;31;21;29
Speaker 1
So and we've seen that we've seen a handful of, of young professionals coming in to our parish meeting. And I hope that that's happening throughout the state. I'd like to see it in between the convention, our state convention and the SBA convention, I was appointed to represent the district, in our AG in the classroom committee, which I love.
00;31;21;29 - 00;31;30;10
Speaker 1
On a personal note, I mean, I have young children, so I love going to my kid's school and reading, and sharing that now in my kids school is a lot of ag kids. So it's.
00;31;30;14 - 00;31;31;08
Speaker 2
It's not it's not.
00;31;31;08 - 00;31;33;07
Speaker 1
The hard work. Still important though. You'd be surprised.
00;31;33;07 - 00;31;37;16
Speaker 3
You'd be surprised. Yeah. But we're getting further and further removed even in communities.
00;31;37;16 - 00;31;41;21
Speaker 1
You're right. So I'm trying to do that a little bit more in the other schools in our community. But,
00;31;41;21 - 00;31;51;29
Speaker 1
so I got involved in ag in the classroom. It's my first year with that. And yeah, so we competed at pH. We just got back from DC, which was an incredible trip. Clint got to come with me this time, which was even better.
00;31;52;01 - 00;31;54;13
Speaker 1
And then we're flying out tomorrow for fusion.
00;31;54;16 - 00;31;56;17
Speaker 2
But we're not bringing the kids this time. But we're bringing.
00;31;56;17 - 00;32;03;27
Speaker 3
One, so we mission are also running a farming operation in the middle of all Clint's working. And also. Yeah.
00;32;03;29 - 00;32;06;07
Speaker 2
So like I said, it made sense.
00;32;06;07 - 00;32;07;01
Speaker 1
That at some.
00;32;07;01 - 00;32;08;17
Speaker 2
Point in all of this, it kind of made sense.
00;32;08;17 - 00;32;09;18
Speaker 1
To for me to spend more time.
00;32;09;18 - 00;32;12;02
Speaker 2
At home. And I don't you're.
00;32;12;02 - 00;32;14;20
Speaker 3
Spending it at home. I just think you're spending it differently.
00;32;14;26 - 00;32;20;00
Speaker 2
It's not here nor there. Our. No, I think yeah. I mean, I don't think I have.
00;32;20;00 - 00;32;24;29
Speaker 1
A gap in my resume, that's for sure. I think that the work that we're doing is going to be fruitful in more than one way.
00;32;25;00 - 00;32;43;03
Speaker 3
I think that's so important. We kind of talked about a lot. Let's just say if you had to pick your favorite aspect of life and our, our Farm Bureau in general, what has been what comes to mind when you think about if you had 30s to tell somebody the best thing of your Farm Bureau experience so far.
00;32;43;03 - 00;32;44;19
Speaker 2
What best thing?
00;32;45;05 - 00;32;52;02
Speaker 1
I think for me and it kind of circles back, is that and I don't know if this is like a term used in agriculture, but
00;32;52;02 - 00;32;56;26
Speaker 1
because I wasn't born into it, I have terrible imposter syndrome.
00;32;56;29 - 00;33;01;10
Speaker 2
Okay. So I know that maybe that doesn't come off this way.
00;33;01;12 - 00;33;25;11
Speaker 1
But I it's actually in the beginning, I struggled to know if I was doing what I was good at, and it just so happened to be in the agricultural space, or if I was actually a contributing member to the industry and Farm Bureau, has taught me that it's that I'm contributing and that it's making a difference and that they need me or people like me would be a better women like me.
00;33;25;11 - 00;33;36;04
Speaker 1
If we're talking about women, they need women like me to be able to do other things too. And in that time, as time has gone by, I've been able to catch cows more.
00;33;36;07 - 00;33;37;12
Speaker 2
And, and, and do.
00;33;37;12 - 00;33;42;16
Speaker 1
Things that actually give me confidence because me going win awards, that doesn't actually give me any confidence.
00;33;42;16 - 00;33;44;19
Speaker 2
Just so you know, well, that's.
00;33;44;19 - 00;33;51;21
Speaker 3
That's what comes natural to you and not the awards. I'm not saying that to, to be, but the communications part and the competitive part was the natural part.
00;33;51;21 - 00;34;10;29
Speaker 1
Yeah. That doesn't that I'm very grateful for it. But it's not something that I need to build myself up that that makes sense. Me actually. For example, diversifying my farm and starting a pumpkin patch last year, doing it myself, that was something that I needed, that I didn't know, that I needed to build myself and build my farm.
00;34;11;00 - 00;34;20;15
Speaker 1
I mean, it was a profitable endeavor. I diversified my farm. It was a grassroots effort. Quite literally. I would not have had the inspiration to do it had it not been for a wife and or.
00;34;20;18 - 00;34;37;22
Speaker 3
I think that's so important. And I think just you talking about I had the communications but not the egg. And a lot of times it's the opposite. We have these we have our farmers and ranchers that are full time and they are full time farmers, and that's their primary source and their row crop or their crawfish. And they can't leave the land as much necessarily.
00;34;37;22 - 00;34;51;22
Speaker 3
And I think it's so important that we have a combination of all the things, because it takes all kinds and everybody working together. We're such as it's such a small percentage of the population these days that it takes absolutely everyone working together and using their strengths to get where we gotta go.
00;34;51;22 - 00;35;21;05
Speaker 1
And I'm all for sustaining and keeping up those generations of farmers who have put five generations into the land and do in propping them and doing whatever I can to keep them going on the end, as well as looking at, like I said, the FFA, not all of those kids are producers, most of them aren't. So if we can if I can give them an example, even especially the women going back to women, most of the leadership in the Louisiana FFA in terms of student leadership are female.
00;35;21;08 - 00;35;34;20
Speaker 1
So if I can show them different routes where they can still work physically work in the field and also give back to the industry in ways that they've strengthened themselves to do, just by setting an example that I'm doing something right.
00;35;34;22 - 00;35;45;05
Speaker 3
I think that's so important, and I'll kind of want to talk a little bit about the women aspect of Women's History Month. That's why we're making sure all of our guests are females and let me take over for the month, but.
00;35;45;07 - 00;35;47;08
Speaker 1
Which I love this, by the way.
00;35;47;10 - 00;35;59;11
Speaker 3
I think it's important to talk about we kind of have it and you have a third child on the way. We don't know if it's a boy or girl if if you are having a daughter, if it is a little girl in there, what do you want her to know about being a
00;35;59;11 - 00;36;04;24
Speaker 3
woman in this industry that sometimes it's it's not always not the nicest because I think it is.
00;36;04;24 - 00;36;15;19
Speaker 3
And I think we are so lucky that in today's age that you can do, you can do as much as you want to do. But what would you tell her? Or just a woman in looking to find her foot in the door?
00;36;15;20 - 00;36;18;29
Speaker 1
I think it's hilarious that we're soft launching Louise Manual right here.
00;36;19;01 - 00;36;22;28
Speaker 3
But I'm manifesting. Hey, I am next to you. We only have girls, so.
00;36;23;01 - 00;36;26;23
Speaker 2
I might be rubbing off on you. I wouldn't be surprised at this point, but,
00;36;26;25 - 00;36;47;03
Speaker 1
I can say that I feel very privileged to be a woman in Louisiana agriculture. Without a doubt. I've always felt privileged. And I've also can say that I've never felt, I guess, intentionally discouraged. Working in this industry. I felt overwhelming support. Now, I can't say that I do not speak for every woman in Louisiana agriculture. I can just say that for me.
00;36;47;05 - 00;36;49;05
Speaker 1
And again, maybe it's just blind.
00;36;49;07 - 00;36;51;08
Speaker 2
Blind naivete, but.
00;36;51;10 - 00;36;52;25
Speaker 1
That's how I feel.
00;36;52;25 - 00;37;11;15
Speaker 1
if I do have a daughter, I would like to think that if I'm in this situation and I look out into the future, first of all, the future looks very bright to me. For women especially, but for agriculturalists and people who want to contribute to our country in that way.
00;37;11;15 - 00;37;15;26
Speaker 1
I'll actually go ahead and say that I feel even more comfortable if I have a daughter,
00;37;15;26 - 00;37;19;15
Speaker 1
both for, like, logistically speaking, like there are resources available.
00;37;19;15 - 00;37;20;24
Speaker 2
For women in AG if I'm being.
00;37;20;29 - 00;37;29;22
Speaker 1
You know, just pure black and white on documentation, there are opportunities to be had, just in that, but also.
00;37;29;22 - 00;37;40;06
Speaker 1
I feel like I've set an example for this child that whether it be a boy or a girl, that you can succeed in whatever you do, as long as you do it with the right intention. And I think that's really good to have.
00;37;40;06 - 00;37;46;28
Speaker 1
Good intentions are easy, I should say, to have good intentions in agriculture. So if we do our job right.
00;37;47;01 - 00;37;47;28
Speaker 2
Here in the now and.
00;37;47;28 - 00;37;55;05
Speaker 1
Advocacy, but also more importantly, as parents, Louise is not going to have an issue. And whatever she wants to do.
00;37;55;05 - 00;38;00;24
Speaker 1
And I know that she will always have that tie that might bring her into the industry.
00;38;00;24 - 00;38;19;15
Speaker 3
And I think even if it's not sweet little these all of the women, future women in agriculture are going to benefit from the work that you're doing. And from that. And as somebody who was raised on a farm, my poor dad only had three girls and couldn't have a boy wasn't in the cards. But I think the values, while we didn't stay back on the farm, we're still working in an industry.
00;38;19;15 - 00;38;26;19
Speaker 3
We still appreciate it. And I think the values that are learned there are so important, regardless of what your children, female or male.
00;38;26;19 - 00;38;26;29
Speaker 2
Want to.
00;38;26;29 - 00;38;50;23
Speaker 1
Do. And everywhere I look, maybe, I mean, I'm sure you could probably sympathize with it's everywhere that I look. I see strong, powerful women who understand that their role can be diverse. And again, my primary role is here and it's taking care of my family. But God has given us all gifts. And I think that as long as I'm prioritizing my family first, the gifts will opportunities that gifts will come.
00;38;50;26 - 00;38;58;13
Speaker 1
And this is where it is right now. But I refer to where I look in Farm Bureau. In the Farm Bureau Federation, I see strong women supported by stronger men, frankly.
00;38;58;13 - 00;38;59;28
Speaker 2
Than that that.
00;39;00;03 - 00;39;27;00
Speaker 1
Have allowed. And these women have paved the way for you. And I and I know again, that sounds cliche, but, you know, we're going to see Temple Grandin infusion. That's she's doing one of the, one of the breakout sessions or keynotes. And that's a great example of someone I've never got to hear speak before that did not fit a certain mold as a woman in her, you know, her era, in her time, much less her industry.
00;39;27;02 - 00;39;28;03
Speaker 2
And, and she.
00;39;28;03 - 00;39;36;18
Speaker 1
Is gone on to truly and literally impact the entire world. So I think, I think that these are people that are doing way better job.
00;39;36;18 - 00;39;37;02
Speaker 2
Than I am.
00;39;37;05 - 00;39;54;13
Speaker 3
I it takes a while, and I think it goes back to those grassroots levels. It takes impacts on all levels, and we've got to start somewhere. And I think making an impact at your home and on your parish level, as well as national capital and around the world is so important. And I just it's been such an awesome time visiting with you, Raquel.
00;39;54;14 - 00;40;06;10
Speaker 3
I've learned so much about you and just about your journey, and I think it's encouraging to somebody who may not be in the industry or in the Farm Bureau to know that there's still a seat at the table for them. And I appreciate you bring that perspective.
00;40;06;10 - 00;40;06;17
Speaker 3
again.
00;40;06;17 - 00;40;23;10
Speaker 1
Thank you for coming to my little piece of Paradise right here. In in here in our story and I do I hope it inspires. Well, first of all, you too, because I think that you've had not an entirely dissimilar journey. And, you probably have those opportunities of being like, no, wait, I'm actually making a difference. And it's not just a job.
00;40;23;10 - 00;40;24;08
Speaker 1
So thank you for what you do.
00;40;24;08 - 00;40;32;10
Speaker 3
Oh, well, thank you, I appreciate that, but, I'm very lucky to work with volunteers like you and to get to do this job every day. So thank you.
00;40;32;10 - 00;40;40;05
Speaker 3
We've talked about a lot of things today, and we're going to be sure to include all the links for our wife. And are those conferences that we've mentioned and all the opportunities that Raquel mentioned today.
00;40;40;11 - 00;40;44;00
Speaker 3
Thank you for listening to this episode of the Louisiana Farm Bureau Podcast.