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    BRYANT, Wis. – For Justin Schroepfer, helping someone in need is a natural response. He was raised with the mindset which is not uncommon in his small northeastern Wisconsin community.
    That is why no one was more surprised than he was when he received a call from the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation informing him he had been selected as the winner of their inaugural Hero of Hope campaign.
    “It was quite comical, and I got quite a chuckle about it,” Schroepfer said. “I didn’t know anything about it until they called and said I had won it. I still don’t even know who nominated me, but they could have really nominated anyone.”
    Schroepfer’s nominator said, “This time of year, Justin is usually found planting a farm field that isn’t even his and eventually makes his way to planting his own fields. Our community is lucky to have this very generous family as a part of it.”
    Schroepfer milks 86 cows in a tiestall barn on his family’s Langlade County farm near Bryant with his father. The pair downsized from milking 160 cows to their current herd size.  
    In his mind, helping others is the norm in Schroepfer’s small town, and he believes that mindset is shared by others.
    “In our little community, there are at least 15 to 20 guys that, if I needed something, I could call them, and they would be here to help,” Schroepfer said. “It is just what we do here, and I would like to think that is how it is everywhere in Wisconsin.”
    One instance of helping others that was cited in his nomination for the Hero of Hope campaign stemmed from a call from the local FFA alumni, telling him someone in the community was suffering a health crisis and was in need of help to put crops in.    
    “It really wasn’t a big deal,” Schroepfer said. “They didn’t have too many acres. We took our equipment over. My uncle handled all the tillage, and I ran the planter. We got it done for them. The FFA alumni provided the fuel for putting in their crops, but we didn’t really expect that. We just wanted to help out a neighbor in need.”
    A second instance that was shared by Schroepfer’s nominator was when a good friend of his also suffered a health issue that created issues for running his trucking company.
    “Another guy and I both had CDLs, so we offered to drive truck to help my friend out,” Schroepfer said. “My friend thought it was great, but I just thought it was the right thing to do. I had the ability to help, so I did.”
    Schroepfer is hesitant to accept the label of hero. He insists there are true heroes serving the country in the military and in police and fire departments around the country.
    “Those are the people that need honoring; they are the real heroes,” Schroepfer said. “I just do the right thing and help people who need it when I can. But those in the military, police and fire departments, they have my full support and always will.”
     According to a WFBF press release, the Heroes of Hope campaign is a subset of the #FarmNeighborsCare campaign which is focused on shedding light on rural heroes who have helped others in their communities through tough times. The Heroes of Hope aims to identify people who have helped bring hope to farmers or businesses in either large or small ways. Members of the agricultural community were encouraged to nominate individuals who have made an impact on the way they conduct business.
    Other finalists recognized this year are Melvin (MJ) Zenner of Taylor County, Duane “Dewey” Kunz of Eau Claire County, Kellie Zahn of Shawano County and Al Shannon of Dunn County.
    All Heroes of Hope finalists will be recognized in an upcoming issue of WFBF’s Rural Route magazine.

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