EAGAN, Minn. — The Minnesota Farm Bureau Federation (MFBF) held its annual Leadership, Education, Advocacy and Promotion (LEAP) Conference Jan. 28-29 in Minnetonka. The conference is hosted by the MFBF Young Farmers and Ranchers (YF&R) and Promotion and Education (P&E) Committees.
Over 200 individuals attended the conference, held at the Marriott Minneapolis Southwest hotel. Several workshops, breakout sessions and networking opportunities provided a variety of opportunities for attendees to grow personally and professionally. View full program.
Four individuals were honored at the Friday night banquet for their contributions to agriculture.
The P&E Committee handed out the Advocate of the Year Award to Linda Binkley of Beltrami County and the Golden Apple Award to Sarah Kuschel of Cass County.
The Advocate of the Year Award is presented to someone who works tirelessly to advocate for farmers and ranchers. An agriculture advocate to her core, Binkley works hard to make Beltrami County agriculture events fun, hands-on and educational for all attendees. She is passionate about Farm Bureau, the resources it provides, and is a well-known 4-H volunteer.
The Golden Apple Award is presented to someone who has gone above and beyond to work with Agriculture in the Classroom programs and educate others about farming and ranching. Working with a variety of groups to promote the Ag in the Classroom program, Kuschel also serves as a regional curriculum specialist for the program.
The YF&R committee presented its Golden Pitchfork Award to Libby Knoebel, formerly of Wright County, while the Outstanding Friend of YF&R went to Kevin Paap of Blue Earth County.
The Golden Pitchfork Award is presented to someone who is not afraid of hard work and heavy lifting. Always willing to lend a hand, Knoebel made a big impact on the MFBF in a short amount of time, demonstrating a commitment to helping MFBF and its members succeed.
The Outstanding Friend of YF&R is presented to someone who has gone above the call of duty to assist and lead YF&R into the future. Paap passionately promoted YF&R programming at the county, state and national levels, while encouraging young farmers to get involved and take advantage of everything offered. Serving in MFBF leadership roles for a combined 24 consecutive years, including 16 as president, his impact and passion for the Farm Bureau is recognizable across the state.
The YF&R Committee also hosted preliminary rounds of the Discussion Meet competition. The top eight contestants advanced to the Discussion Meet semifinals, which will take place at the MFBF Annual Meeting in November. Moving on were:
- Justin Crowley (Washington/Ramsey County)
- Jeff Debele (Wright County)
- Alyson Erickson (Clay County)
- Haely Leiding (Washington/Ramsey County)
- Abby Korte (Norman County)
- Jeff Pagel (Olmsted County)
- Joe Ramstad (Cass County)
- Christine Reitsma (Stearns County)
Additional highlights include:
- An inspirational keynote message from Rick Metzger
- A sneak peek of the new agriculture license plates for the state of Minnesota from Minnesota FFA Foundation Executive Director Val Aarsvold
- A special announcement about the Farm Legacy Program, a new initiative launching later this year to help families start discussions around farm succession planning
- Unveiling of the inaugural Minnesota Farm Bureau Foundation Ag Day Gala on March 22
- Next year’s conference will be held at Grand Casino Hinckley in Pine County
— Minnesota Farm Bureau Federation