FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                     October 2, 2007

YF&R DISCUSSION MEET HELD AT NORTHWESTERN

Marcy VenJohn is the winner of Northwestern Oklahoma State University’s fourth annual Collegiate Young Farmers & Ranchers (YF&R) discussion meet held Sept. 26. She is a senior from Ingalls, Kan.

Northwestern Oklahoma State University Collegiate Young Farmers & Ranchers discussion meet participants include (from left) Duke Nunley, runner-up; Rachael Paxson, runner-up; March VenJohn, winner, and Steve Sneary, organization sponsor and Northwestern farm manager.

Duke Nunley, Alva sophomore, and Rachael Paxson, Medicine Lodge, Kan., senior, were the runners-up in the competition. Other contestants were Jarod Noble, Beaver freshman; Mark Freeman, Medicine Lodge sophomore; Mary Jackson, Ringwood junior; and Darin Frech, Fairview sophomore.

The seven contestants competed in two preliminary rounds and one final round where they were judged based on subject knowledge, courtesy, problem solving, implementation of their ideas, as well as voice quality and speaking ability.

YF&R sponsor Steve Sneary said an example of the type of questions and/or problems that are discussed would be “What is the public perception of the family farm, and how does that perception impact future agricultural policy discussion?”

Talking points would be corporate farms, government payments/privacy, lifestyle farms, media and agritainment/agritourism. 

Oklahoma Farm Bureau awarded the winner and runners-up with all-expense paid trips to compete at the national YF&R Leadership Conference and Collegiate Discussion Meet in Baltimore, Md., Feb. 16-18. The winner will compete against other discussion meet winners from universities across the United States.

The participants also will have the opportunity to attend leadership and agriculture sessions and tour agriculture operations and attractions in the area of the conference.

The national conference focuses on leadership and personal developmental opportunities. The interactive conference brings together more than 800 young farmers and ranchers from 45 states.

-NW-

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