A Statewide Women in Agriculture “The Heart of the Farm” Event, hosted by Nemaha, Jackson, & Pottawatomie County Conservation Districts will be Saturday, February 22, 2020, at the Corning Community Building in Corning, KS.

Register online at tinyurl.com/2020wia no later than February 14, 2020. Doors open the day of the event at 8:00 a.m., where a light breakfast will be served. Presentations begin at 8:30 a.m. There will be a break in presentations at noon for a free lunch, catered by Home Cookin’ of Seneca. Both men and women are welcome to attend this free and informative event and listen to an amazing lineup of speakers.

Back by popular demand this year is Jolene Brown as the keynote speaker! Jolene is known as the Champion for Agriculture and she’s a passionate supporter, promoter, and champion for the people who feed, clothe, and fuel the world. She is a walking-talking spokesperson and consultant for the family-owned business. With her keen insight and result-centered approach, she’s been invited to sit at lots of kitchen tables and family business meetings. Jolene’s keynote address will be “It’s a Jungle Out There! Blazing New Trails in Agriculture.” We’ll learn the value of what we do is in the eye of the purchaser, not the producer. With lots of humor and real-life stories, we’ll laugh while we learn the joys of blazing trails in agriculture’s “jungle!”

Jolene says, “We balance soil fertility, feed rations, and our checkbooks – but we overwork, overwhelm, and overload ourselves. It’s time to bring renewal and balance to our work and family lives with valuable content, real-life examples, and a whole lot of fun.” Jolene will teach and show us how with “The Balancing Act: 10 Ideas to Relieve Stress and Bring Renewal to Our Farm and Family Life,” a fun and interactive workshop. You won’t want to miss this!

With stress on the farm, comes another topic many people are familiar with but unwilling to talk about. Depression and suicide. Charlie Griffin worked as a stress management specialist and received an advanced degree in Marriage and Family Therapy. He served as Assistant Director of Kansas’ farm crisis hotline from 1986-1994, then directed the Kansas Rural Family Helpline, a telephone-based crisis hotline from 2001-2010. Griffin has worked widely in support of family relationships, farm family and home-based business management, change and stress management, chemical dependency treatment, dispute resolution and mediation. Charlie will be presenting “Weathering Tough Times in Agriculture: Managing Stress and Mental Health Challenges.”

 Are you prepared in the event of a disaster? Sandy Johnson is a Senior Associate with SES Incorporated, and she specializes in Agriculture Emergency Preparedness. She’ll share with us the steps on how to be prepared before, during, and after should a disaster strike your home or community. Sandy has 25 years of experience working with county emergency managers, public health professionals, and the Kansas farming and ranching community.

In addition to being prepared for a natural disaster, we need to be prepared for passing the farm or business along to the next generation. Dennis White has practiced law for 35 years at White Law Office in Holton, a three-generation law firm. He is aware of the increasing role of wives and daughters in the management and successful transfer of farms to the next generation. Dennis will share information on how to prepare for family farm or business succession and estate planning.

Another great speaker lined up for the day is Brandi Buzzard Frobose, a rancher, cowgirl, mama, wife, and ag communicator. She is passionate about sharing the story of beef production and engaging with grocery shoppers to help reduce confusion about how food is raised. Buzzard has shared her story and explained beef sustainability on MSNBC, FOX News, and CBS News and has also spoken about beef sustainability to White House officials on behalf of beef producers. Along with her husband and daughter, they raise purebred Gelbvieh and Balancer cattle in southeast Kansas. Come listen to Brandi share her compelling story!

Rounding out the list of speakers is Malori Henry, a nationally certified massage therapist serving clients in Northeast Kansas. Along with her national certification, she is also a certified medical massage therapist, certified infant massage therapist, and a certified headache specialist. She uses these certifications to focus on pain management in her business, Benevolence Total Wellness LLC. Malori will share tips and tricks to relieve stress and pain through massage therapy.

Please join us for this wonderful event that would not be possible without all the generous support and donations from sponsors. We especially want to thank our platinum sponsors this year: Nemaha Valley Community Hospital, Community HealthCare System, Holton Community Hospital/Family Practice Associates, Kansas WRAPS, and Kansas Department of Agriculture-Division of Conservation.

Remember to register by February 14, 2020, at tinyurl.com/2020wia. For more information and to see any updates regarding the event, check out our website: www.kswomeninag.com. Hurry and register today!