OWATONNA, Minn. — Jon Schmidt’s World Dairy Expo experience is about to get a lot more intricate. Schmidt was recently elected to the WDE board of directors, which means he is no longer just …
KERKHOVEN, Minn. — Growing up on a dairy farm, Ali (Clark) Bouta played an active role on the farm. Even though she holds a full-time job in town today, she continues to play a key role on her …
PLAINVIEW, Minn. — At 5:45 a.m., while most 23-year-olds are still asleep, Mia Dose is already stepping into her milk truck and firing up the engine. She lets it warm for 20 minutes before heading …
FERGUS FALLS, Minn. — Among 100-year-old LeRoy Quernemoen’s possessions are milk bottles with a carrying case; model milk trucks; hats; and a green scrapbook with pictures, receipts and …
Suzie Benoit Stitzer, Wisconsin Grant County 500 cows What kind of barn cameras do you have? We have eight Reolink cameras that are all connected to Wi-Fi. We …
How many times a day do you milk, and what is your current herd average, butterfat and protein ? We milk two times a day. Our rolling herd average is 21,696 pounds of milk, 917 pounds of butterfat …
ROCK SPRINGS, Wis. — At 12:30 a.m. April 14, Brian Bender and his longtime girlfriend, Jessica Kelley, were woken by the pager from Bender’s role as a volunteer firefighter. Both knew a storm was …
SPRING VALLEY, Wis. — At the end of 2025, Tim and Shirley Colbenson achieved their dream of passing on their dairy farm to the next generation. Their son, Brian Colbenson, and his wife, Felicia, …
RALEIGH, N.C. — For more than 20 years, Max Armstrong’s desk was within 10 feet of the desk of agriculture broadcaster Orion Samuelson. Samuelson, who hired Armstrong in 1977, quickly became his …
TONY, Wis. — The only person in the room surprised when Gary van Doorn’s granddaughter stepped up to the podium at the Wisconsin Guernsey Breeders’ Association convention to present him with …
LARCHWOOD, Iowa — In early January, Kevin and Cari Knapp took a big step in their dairy farming journey when they moved their Jersey herd into their new 320-stall freestall barn. The site has five …
FOND DU LAC, Wis. — Blending Christian education with agricultural education is an endeavor that Winnebago Lutheran Academy is working hard at. The private school is in its fourth year of offering …
Tell us about your farm and family. My husband, Nick, and I milk our cows in a tiestall barn we currently rent. We started milking in 2017. We own a barn and land in the Casco area, where we raise …
MARSHFIELD, Wis. — Nurturing and fostering youth is the goal of the Power of Ag Career Expo, held annually in Marshfield, as part of the Marshfield Area Chamber of Commerce & Industry’s …
MERRILL, Wis. — Hans Breitenmoser Jr. is concerned about the changes he has witnessed in rural Wisconsin over the course of his life as a dairy farmer. That concern, and a desire to help change the …
NEW ALBIN, Iowa — Mallory Mohn’s involvement in the Community College Alliance for Agriculture Advancement program, also called the C2A3 program, started her brainstorming how to increase …
CHIPPEWA FALLS, Wis. — Becoming certified for organic dairy production may seem overwhelming, Emily Fowler said, but if taken step-by-step, it does not have to be. Fowler, the certification …
CHICAGO — The theatre bug first bit Michael Dalberg when he was an elementary school student in rural Wisconsin, during the school’s Christmas play. When he took the stage as Santa Claus, he did …
CHIPPEWA FALLS, Wis. — When a guest walks into Olson’s Ice Cream, Jeremy Hunt hopes a sense of nostalgia reflecting the creamery’s history washes over them. That nostalgia is what drew him to …
Ken and Jackie Thurk Villard, Minnesota What year did you start farming, and what year did you retire? Ken started in 1961 and Jackie joined in 1966. We retired from dairying in …