Continuing the dairy tradition

HOLDINGFORD, Minn. — Growing up as a third-generation dairy farmer, Grace Woitalla is no stranger to the importance of keeping the tradition of farming going.

“Dairy has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember,” Woitalla said. “From playing with calves with my sister to helping on the farm every day with various things, it’s always been there.”

Woitalla, the daughter of Keith and Patty Woitalla, has represented Stearns County as a dairy princess for three years. But now she said she is ready to take on a new role as a finalist for Princess Kay of the Milky Way.

A graduate of Holdingford High School and a current student at Ridgewater College in Willmar, Woitalla enjoys helping on her family’s farm near Holdingford with tasks such as milking, mixing feed, feeding calves and assisting with fieldwork. She said she especially enjoys tidying up the barn.

“My favorite chore would be cleaning barns because I like to do it in a specific way to keep the cows clean and comfortable,” she said. “My family does a great job of it, but I just feel like I do it one step better because of how repetitive it is.”

Her family’s farm is owned by her father and her uncle, Kurt Woitalla. The family milks 125 Holsteins in a tiestall barn that has been in the family for three generations. Woitalla’s strong connection to the farm was forged through her family’s support.

“My dad and my grandpa were definitely my biggest supporters,” Woitalla said. “My grandpa taught me a lot of what I know, and even though he is no longer with us, I still like to come and honor what he started so long ago in 1969.”

Woitalla plans to come back to the farm after college.

‘‘I’m double majoring in ag business and precision agriculture and with those two degrees, my goal is to come back to the family farm and continue helping while also doing agronomy, sales and service and seed sales on the side,” she said.

Woitalla said getting involved in FFA in high school, being secretary of the Professional Agriculture Students Club at college and participating in competitions through both organizations has also helped her prepare for her future career on the farm.

As Woitalla waits to pursue her next steps, she has bigger things to focus on, or rather, a bigger title.

Woitalla initially ran for Princess Kay in 2023, but was not chosen as one of the 10 finalists. Woitalla said she took this as a learning opportunity to prepare herself to run again.

“Not getting it last year was disappointing, (but) it was still helpful because I was able to go through the judging process and know what to expect,” Woitalla said. “Last year, just sitting there watching the video waiting for my name, I realized that there are 30 plus girls out there with the same passion as me who are good at what they do. Even if I didn’t get it, someone was going to do an excellent job.”

Just a year later, Woitalla was in the same position, but this time with different results. Woitalla was celebrating Mother’s Day at her grandma’s house when the video aired. While the plan was to watch it with just her mom, dad and sister, the excitement led to the whole family joining.

“Last year we had a big watch party with all of my family around and I didn’t get it, so I didn’t want to be disappointed again,” she said. “We were just going to have our little family watch it, but slowly everybody started to follow us.”

With everyone’s eyes on the video, Woitalla said she felt herself getting discouraged, thinking maybe her getting picked just wasn’t meant to be. But finally, she heard a familiar introduction.

“I was sitting in a rocking chair, and all of a sudden, I heard the first words of my bio from the May event,” Woitalla said. “I jumped up and said ‘Mom that’s mine’ and she told me to wait until my name was called.”

Eventually, the name Grace Woitalla was announced which led to excitement around the room. But for Woitalla, she said it was time to start focusing on her goals as a finalist.

“My biggest goal is to advocate for dairy farms big and small,” she said. “Whether it’s a small one like mine or a larger family farm that has robots or different types of milking systems, farming is different all throughout the state, so I want to be able to recognize that and act on it.”

Woitalla plans to do this by talking with different age groups, from elementary students to nursing homes.

“I like reaching out to younger kids because they’re so interested in everything in life, and they always ask the best questions,” Woitalla said. “If I can get them excited about dairy farming, or including dairy in their food, then maybe they’ll start to think more about how dairy impacts their life.”

Woitalla especially likes playing trivia with kids because it leads to them asking more questions which keeps them involved. In addition to educating the younger generation, she said she recognizes the importance of learning from the generations before her.

“I love getting to talk to older people about ways they farmed versus how I farm today,” she said. “It’s cool to find the differences in our ways.”

As she continues her journey as a Princess Kay finalist, she’s excited to bring her dairy journey together to express the importance of incorporating dairy into everyday life.

“I want to be able to share my dairy story,” she said. “Farming is getting smaller and smaller, so if I’m able to inspire one person to pick up a glass of milk or support a farmer who might be having a hard time, then I know I’ve made a difference.”