Getting to Know Me

Growing up: I was raised on a small cow/calf and club lamb operation in central West Virginia. As I grew up in 4-H and FFA, I integrated registered Limousin and registered Suffolk in to my herd and flock. The Limousin was because we had had success with the breed as a terminal cross and it was predominately what my cousin was raising at the time. We had used Suffolk rams in the past and I wanted to be able to show in the purebred show at the state fair. Suffolks were a good fit because they still had plenty of muscling to compete in the market lambs but they also didn't have the wooly heads and legs that Hampshires have. Since my Dad and I do the majority of the shearing, we didn't want to have to shear heads a whole lot. 
I was extremely active in 4-H with livestock judging and I even was top individual in a few contests. Notably, I scored a 397 out of 400 my last year at a sheep judging contest. I also have been relatively successful showing with having multiple breed champions at the state fair with both my sheep and Limousin with animals that I raised. I have also been in the masters division with my purebred sheep for many years and been in the top 10 in beef showmanship. Besides the livestock end of things, I have served in multiple leadership positions in my 4-H club such as President, Vice President, and Secretary. At 4-H camp I was the chief of my tribe and received the Heart H award. 
I was also very active in my FFA chapter and through high school the majority of my livestock projects were completed in FFA. I served as chapter secretary and treasurer as well as the financial and chapter outreach chairperson. I was successful at the state level in public speaking having been in the top 3 two years in a row. I also won the state proficiency award in diversified livestock production in 2014 and received a silver status nationally. I have received the state and American FFA degree as well. 
In my breed associations I have been more active with Limousin as I am the WV Limousin Breeders secretary and serve on the Board of Directors. I also serve as the treasurer for the junior association. I have been successful at junior nationals having a 1st place magazine ad in 2016 and 5th place in 2017. I also was 5th in the photo contest and 2nd in public speaking in 2016. In 2017 I was 1st place in sales talk. 

This is the group of kids that made the trek to Grand Island for the 2017 NJLSC. They're more important to me than the awards I received. It's the memories. 

 

College: I am a Senior at West Virginia University majoring in Agriculture and Extension Education. I plan to graduate in May 2018. I have had courses in livestock production, soils, forestry, agribusiness, computer skills, teaching, and livestock evaluation. I have been on both the President's and Dean's List.
I have served as the President of the WVU Block and Bridle and in 2015 attended the Midwest Quadrathlon where my team was 3rd in the quiz bowl portion of the contest. In 2016 I was a member of the WVU Livestock Judging team where we most notably was 3rd at the Keystone International Livestock Expo. I was 6th individual in beef and 9th in reasons. The judging team experience is something I will treasure and take with me forever. 

Community: I have helped in many volunteer projects with my organizations as well as my Church. I have been a 4-H camp counselor during my time in college as well as completed many volunteer hours with my club. In my church I serve as the Sunday School teacher for middle and high school. I have been able to help with our Christmas from the Heart project as well.  

Hobbies: Some people might say that showing livestock is a hobby, I see a hobby as something that you enjoy but still doesn't take over your life. It's something to do in your spare time. I've never met anyone who shows livestock who has a whole lot of spare time. However, my hobbies would include livestock photography, watching WVU football and basketball, creative writing, and reading a good book.

Telling my Story

4/15/2017 
I've recently attended two conferences with nearly the same message: Tell Your Ag Story. They said that the non-agriculture community wants to hear our story. But I also left wondering, "how do I tell my ag story?" In some ways, I feel like I've been doing it because of the posts that I make about my calves, lambs, and of course my pigs from last summer, Howard and Bernadette. Sometimes, though, I don't feel like I'm doing enough. I wonder if the fact that I ONLY share with my friends and family is enough. They pretty much knows what goes on because the majority of my friends and family are from agriculture backgrounds whether they actually grew up on a farm or not. The question is, how do I do more? 

10/11/2017
As you can see, it's been a while since I've looked at this post I began in April. From finals, to AI'ing in May, to Junior Nationals, and aging out of 4-H and FFA; it was a busy few months and I just now caught a break to look back!
When I think now about telling my ag story, I still think that posting photos, videos, etc. about life on the farm is incredibly important. I also think that (although I don't write near as much as I should) that this blog is a way for me to tell my ag story.
When I was in Washington, DC getting on the Metro, we (my Mom and I) had asked a woman to make sure we were getting on the right train. Afterwards, she asked what we were in town for. I told her that we were there for National Ag Day and I had been on Capitol Hill talking to representatives about why they should support agriculture. She then asked how I felt about GMO's. This was actually the first time I had been asked about them. Although I'm not a row crop farmer, I have a general understanding of the importance of GMO's. I went on to tell her why we need them and that they are going to be one of the ways that we "feed the 9."
This was a way to tell my ag story without really telling MY story. I was able to share my knowledge with someone who probably rarely sees a cow or cornfield. Now that I think back on this experience, I know that I can inform people about agriculture without really having an in-depth knowledge of the topic they are asking about. I know that I have many avenues of telling my Ag story whether it is online, writing, or through just common conversations on the Metro in DC.
I am going to try to post more and tell more about my story, and make it a goal to write about what we're doing on the farm so I, Jennifer Friend, can Tell my Ag Story.

An Open Letter to my First Show Heifer

Thank you. Thank you for being the start to something I'm eternally grateful for. Thank you for being the first. Thank you for always being there as the one I could say, "that's my first show heifer." Thank you for teaching me how to avoid getting kicked or butted, since you were the first to do that too. You were the one that gave me calves to show and keep as replacement heifers. You were the start to my herd.

You were the first beef animal I received a trophy for at the county fair. You were way bigger than me, and that scared me, but you gave me the confidence I needed. You were also the first cow I pregnancy checked (and at nine years old, I didn't know what I was feeling for, but since it was you; it was okay). When you had your first calf, I was so nervous for everything to go right. I was so excited that I could see you calve though. When you finally had a heifer (after two bulls), I was elated that I'd finally be able to keep one of your calves.

It's been 12 years, six of which you were on the show string, and 11 calves. You've given me two feeder steers to show, two show heifers, and four replacement heifers. You're starting to "not be quite the cow" that you have been. Your udder is going downhill, you're teeth aren't that great, and you're not quite as sassy as you were. They tell me it's time for you to "take your last ride on the big truck." Dad told me when you were still a calf that he hoped I'd be in college when you had to be sold. I'm in college, so I guess it must be time. It must be time for me to lead you on the trailer for the last time.

Thank you, Princess, thank you for being the first.

The Struggle of Being a College Farm Kid in the Spring

Spring. Besides summer, it has to be my favorite season of the year. The days are longer, the grass is greener, and the birds start chirping again. Calving and lambing is over, and the babies start bouncing around and having a grand time under the sun. During high school, I LOVED coming home from school to see the babies bouncing around and getting to see them continually developing. I was also able to go outside more and maybe, just maybe, the mud might even be drying up!

Now, as I'm nearing the end of my sophomore year of college, I'm find myself aching to be home and working on the farm, seeing all of the babies, and starting to work more with this years show string. I was able to get my show pigs over spring break, but I haven't been able to really get to know them let alone take them outside. So I've compiled a list of the struggles of the farm kid, in college, during the spring.

• Your parents keep telling you how your favorite cow's calf is looking like the next great one...And won't send you a picture! 

• They turn the cows out on pasture without you. Which seemingly before, they couldn't do it without you! 

• They tell you how much your show animals are growing...but they still won't send you a picture! 

• The warm weather keeps reminding you about what you could be doing outside, yet you're stuck in class (that is probably about farming, making you want to be outside even more!) 

• You just learned to AI and your dad plans to synch the cows during the week when you can't be there and get your practice in

•  The weeks between you and being home for the summer drag on, and on, and on 

• Your favorite part of spring is seeing everything "green-up" and all you're seeing "green-up" is the little bits of green grass that gets trampled by students on campus 

• Sure, you can go to the school's farm and see all the new babies, but it just isn't the same 

This is just a few of the things that I hate about being at college during springtime. A good thing about not being home every week, is that when you go home the drastic changes in the new calf crop or lamb crop is more evident. The awesome thing is, only a few weeks between spring starting and being home for the summer!

 Be sure to comment with some of your favorite things about spring on the farm!

This. Is. It.

On October 31, 2015, I unzipped my FFA jacket for the last time along with around 3,400 other FFA members that had just received their American FFA degree. It is essentially the capstone on many great FFA careers.

As I unzipped my jacket for that final time, a flood of emotions came over me. I tried holding back tears knowing that it was the end of a five year journey. But beside the sad emotions, those tears symbolized many, many memories and experiences that I can never forget. Those tears were not only sad tears since it was the end, but happy tears that it had even happened.

Imagine if those 33 young students from 18 states did not gather in Kansas City at the American Royal to form the Future Farmers of America. Imagine if the chapter from Fredericktown, Ohio did not don their blue corduroy jackets to Kansas City so that they would adopt those jackets as the official dress. What on earth would we wear!? What symbol would we have that essentially everyone from the state of Alaska to Puerto Rico and from the state of Maine to Hawaii know us for?

What I am trying to say is, there are so, so many people that have had a play in making this organization what it is today, and without all of those people, 3,434 FFA members would not have received their American FFA degree this year. They would not have been pushed to buy that cow, invest in that lawn-mower, or try that new type of corn to get the best yield.

Thank you to those 33 boys from 18 states for forming the FFA. I would not be the person I am today, and nor would the thousands and thousands of people that have been in the FFA be who they are either. Think about it, the FFA has produced a President! Anyone of the thousands current and past members could be one in the future!

Personally, I want to thank the good Lord above, my parents, my advisors, and all my friends for the experiences, resources, and memories to make it to this point in the FFA.

The Fear of Aging Out

Another fair season has come and gone for me. This made my 16th year showing animals at my local county fair and my 7th year showing at the state fair. However, with the total years of me showing animals rising, my age is rising as well. In fact, I only have two years left until I can't show as a 4-H or FFA member anymore. To tell the truth, that scares me to death. I will then become what my Granny says, a has-been. Everything will start with was, not am or is. I will have to start saying I was a 4-H member or I was an FFA member. I dread the day I turn 21 because the part of my life that I have treasured for so long, showing livestock as a junior, will have to come to an end at the end of that 4-H year.
It is hard not to reflect on everything that I was able to accomplish and participate in, and think of what I could have done more or things that I wish I would have been able to go to earlier. I wish I could have started showing at the state fair earlier and gone to bigger shows, but I also didn't get involved in showing purebred animals until about midway in my 4-H career. 
 Despite all of these regrets and the sadness that goes with aging out, it is still important to look back on all of the opportunities and accomplishments that happened in the past 11 years of showing as a junior exhibitor.

1.  Scholarships: If I would not have been able to show, I know of at least two scholarships that I have received that I probably would not have gotten. There are numerous scholarships that I also probably would not have even heard of if it had not been for showing.

2. Closer to Family: I must say, especially within the past few show seasons, I have grown much, much closer to my family. 

3.  Friends: All of the friends I have been able to make via shows and being in 4-H and FFA in general were lifesavers when it came to my first year of college. 

4. Time management: Those 8 a.m shows definitely proved that time management is super important. Getting up early enough, getting everything washed, blow dried, fed, and fitted in time for the show lends itself towards helping you get pretty good at time management. 

It's going to hurt when I come out of the showring that final time as a junior exhibitor, but it will be so worth it. Tears have been shed, tears will be shed, but I would not trade for any of it.  

 Me and my first sheep Pepper, we dressed up as the Teletubbies!

 My favorite cow, Yea-Sayer; so many opportunities just because of her!

My sheep Softie and I in Master's showmanship

Driving a hog in the round robin round of Masters showmanship at county fair.

 

Credibility

This post doesn't exactly have to do with what I'll typically post however, my subject matter is (what I consider) pretty important. In my college English class, it was highly stressed that we use credible sources (NOT WIKIPEDIA) when we were not only writing research papers (any paper for that matter) but I soon realized that when writing or posting anything, it is very, very important to use credible sources. Not only does it make you gain credibility, but it also puts more reliable sources out there. Facebook (in my 19 year old opinion) is the ruination of credibility. I cannot even begin to count the amount of "sharing" that people do that is not from (what I would consider) reliable sources! Sharing recipes and other things like that is great (I love seeing yummy food) but sharing unintelligent, no common sense links is ridiculous. As you share this hubbub, you're loosing your credibility. That's enough of my soapbox.

Here are a few helpful tips when sharing links on social media:
1. If it's too good to be true, more than likely, it is.
2. If the domain (i.e www.facebook.com is a domain) seems odd or just dumb, it's probably not a credible source
3. Use sources like USA Today, NY Times, basically, any major news outlet (newspapers, news TV...)


That's all for this time!