2017 Annual Meeting Press Release

 PRESS RELEASE

7 December, 2017

Contact: John Thompson, (208) 239-4292

Idaho Farm Bureau Honors Madison County Volunteers

FORT HALL - Dean and Shirlene Schwendimann of Madison County are the 2017 recipients of the Idaho Farm Bureau President’s Cup Award. The Schwendimann’s received Farm Bureau’s most prestigious award on Wednesday, December 6 during the organization’s 78^th annual convention.

The Schwendimann’s are lifelong farmers from Newdale and have volunteered their time and effort to the organization and their fellow farmers and ranchers for the last 40 years. Shirlene served in leadership on the Women’s Leadership Committee for more than 15 years. Dean served on the State Board of Directors for nearly 20 years. Prior to that they were both involved at the county level.

 About 350 Farm Bureau members representing 36 county Farm Bureaus attended the Annual Meeting. Delegates to the convention set policy to ensure all water agreements protect Idaho’s longstanding water doctrine, first in time, first in right. Delegates opposed fire rules proposed by the Idaho Department of Lands which will impose regulatory burdens on small landowners and supported additional measures to reduce wolf depredation. Delegates also adopted language calling for a study on Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) and the Secure Rural Schools (SRS) to determine whether rural counties, burdened with high percentages of federal land, are getting a fair shake from the federal government.

 Bryan Searle of Bingham County was reelected as president of the Idaho Farm Bureau. Mark Trupp of Teton County was reelected vice president.

 Gerald Marchant of Cassia County, Luke Pearce of Payette County, Marjorie French of Latah County and Dan Garner of Franklin County were reelected to the Idaho Farm Bureau State Board of Directors. Travis McAffee of Lost Rivers Farm Bureau was elected to serve as a state director from District 2. He replaces Danny Ferguson who retired.

Kyle Wade of Bannock County was elected as the Idaho Farm Bureau Young Farmer and Rancher chairman. He replaces Lanae Nalder of Minidoka County, who aged-out of the program.

Sherril Tillotson of Bannock County and Doris Pearson of Twin Falls County, were reelected to serve on the Idaho Farm Bureau Women’s Leadership Committee. Sandy Daniel of Boundary County and Kristie Dorsey of Canyon County were elected to serve on the Women’s Leadership Committee.

 Winner of this year’s Young Farmer and Rancher discussion meet was Dusty Clark of Rigby. He comes from a ranching family and works as veterinarian. He received a Polaris ATV and an all-expense paid trip to Nashville, Tennessee to compete in the American Farm Bureau Discussion Meet in January.

LaNae Nalder of Minidoka County won the Young Farmer and Rancher Excellence in Agriculture Award. Cole and Lynette Smith of Bear Lake County received the Young Farmer and Rancher Achiever Award. Nalder won a $5,500 credit toward a Polaris four-wheeler while the Smith’s won a Polaris Ranger. Nalder and the Smiths will also travel to the American Farm Bureau Convention in Nashville in January to compete for the national Excellence in Agriculture and Achiever competitions.

 Dealers from 17 Idaho Polaris Dealerships donated the Polaris Ranger and Northwest Farm Credit and Idaho Farm Bureau donated the Polaris four-wheeler.

Recognized as Women of the Year were Karen Matthews of Bear Lake County, Carleen Clayville of Cassia County, Helen Percy of Elmore County, Sheryl Nuxoll of Idaho County and Stephanie Mickelsen of Bonneville County.