Volunteers stood in awe as they set the final pieces on the night before Agriculture Career Day, held on Tuesday, September 17th at Welden Farms in Jonesville. While this marked the 11th anniversary of the program in the county, hosted formerly by the Ag Council, this was the second event hosted by Hillsdale County Farm Bureau members. Jan Sober, main coordinator of the event, also served on the ag council before it disbanded in a few years back and has been a tremendous help in moving this program forward. Scott Welden, Ethan Bognar, Chuck Sigler, and Amber Kohler also served on the committee again this year.
The program was available to all high school students in Hillsdale County including Homer, Hudson, and Addison schools. The event brought in twelve schools with 235 students and chaperone’s that nearly tripled the attendance from 2023.
Students began the morning together to hear from opening speaker, Steve Meckley from Meckley’s Flavor Fruit Farm. Since 1956, Meckley’s has been a staple of Hillsdale County, providing locally grown apples to Detroit Markets in the early years and eventually adding a bakery and cider mill. The vision for what ‘could be’ has been a driving force going back to the founders Ray and Louise Meckley. Steve engaged the students with probing questions throwing out various treats and items as prizes for reciprocating the interaction.
Students were then divided into groups for the eight stations to learn about the career opportunities that agriculture provides. This year, career day focused on organizations that support the agriculture industry. While there were 10 presentations, some presenters even paired up with others to give a diverse look into their career path and how to get there. The committee was excited to host such a variety of options for area students and speakers delivered a powerful message to students about the endless opportunities they have ahead of them. Kudos to the speakers that volunteered their time to prepare and present:
Stephanie Smith, Creek Valley Farms, spoke on Agronomy with an interactive look at what agronomists do to support farmers in understanding how plants can be grown, modified, and used for the best agriculture production.
Dr. Kayla Sweeney, Countryside Veterinary Services, is a large animal Veterinarian and she shared her expertise on how she helps to ensure the best health to large animals traveling farm-to-farm. She also demonstrated the many tools she carries on her truck to assist her because you never know when a pregnant animal is in immediate need of human assistance to deliver safely.
Sam Fether, The Anderson's, spoke on grain processing and the various processing steps that wheat goes through to reach a store shelve along with career opportunities throughout The Anderson’s.
Jim McNellis, University of Northwest Ohio, shared the Degree Opportunities that UNOC offers and provided pamphlets to learn more.
Ethan Bognar & Ashley Buehrer, The Anderson's, focused on Agri Supply & Services. Ethan primarily spoke on the operations side of agribusiness, trucking, application, and outdoor work. Ashley primarily spoke on sales and building lasting relationships with customers.
Josh Fowler, Greenmark Equipment, showcased his truck and equipment he uses on calls when farmers need various mechanical & technology support on the farm.
- Chuck Sigler, Wells Equipment, and Brock Sprunger, Greenmark Equipment, discussed Equipment & Precision Sales focusing on how a farmer makes equipment purchasing decision sharing that technology, personality, and day-to-day commitments help them make business decisions in the field and on the farm.
Buddy Sebastian, Sebastian Well Drilling, was joined by Cody Render & Brandon Yoder, co-owners of Advanced Farm Supply, focused on sales, service, mechanical/technical work highlighting the importance of environmental compliance or stewardship and business entrepreneurship.
Speakers not only discussed what they do in their careers but gave students the insight on the path that led them to where they are today and the requirements that were needed to pursue their career.
During lunch, State President Hunter Bognar spoke to students about his journey from high school FFA chapter opportunities to where he is today. Students then enjoyed pizza from Main Street in Jonesville and Luigi’s in Litchfield. Fresh-picked apples and bottled water were donated by Kohler Strawberry Farms in Jerome. Refreshing Arps white and chocolate milk were donated by The Dairy Promoters.
This year’s sponsors of this event helped build the foundation for which this program thrives on, feeding hungry teenagers! In all seriousness, much gratitude to several local organizations that sponsored this year’s event!
Lane View Farm
Market House
Belson Farms
Powers Clothing
MSU Extension
Sanders Insurance Agency, Inc
Kohler Farms
Waldron Grain & Fuel
The Anderson's LLC
MI WORKS Southeast
Greenmark Equipment
Finegan Farms
Ferry Farms
Welden Farms
Wholesale Carnico Foods LLC
Scott's Service
Greenstone Farm Credit Services
Jackson College, Michigan State University College of Ag & Natural Resources, Michigan Works Southeast represented their organization providing career and college materials along with an on-site representative to speak with students on the various opportunities they could indulge in.
Closing the program was Scott Welden of Welden Farms. His final message to students was to “take action” emphasizing that they [students] have the responsibility to purse and explore what they are interested in. Closing with, “it’s up to you and what you do after today is what matters!” Scott, the Welden family and team at the farm spent a tremendous amount of time preparing the farm for student arrival, meeting with speakers to ensure they were prepared with their station, and they volunteered the day of the event through clean up. This dedication to the program was top-notch and was a key part of ensuring the program ran smoothly.
Many thanks to the volunteers who helped move students to each station, direct traffic, and provide support for set up and tear down at the end of the day – the station tents were certainly not a one-person job!
Thank you to the support of school staff and attendance of so many great students that joined us for the event!
When surveyed, both students and chaperones were surprised at how many careers were involved in agriculture.
Visit our website at michfb.com/hillsdale or Facebook page to learn more about the 2025 Agriculture Career Day program and other county farm bureau programs!