Page 4 • Iowa Dairy Princess Special Edition • Dairy Star • July 31, 2012

Unionland Feed & Supply108 S. Walnut St. • West Union, IA

563-422-5022

Nicole Fagle, 18

GOOD LUCK AT STATE NICOLE!

Caitlin Geise, 20

Best of luck to Caitlin Geise from

Prairie Farms563-582-7206

Town: FayetteParents: Dan and Melissa Fagle and the late Sally FagleTell us about yourself, the farm you live and/or work on and your future plans. I am a recent North Fayette graduate that will be attending Northeast Iowa Commu-nity College in the fall for elementary education. I have three siblings; Chelsey, 20, Kayla, 16, and Reed, 2. In my spare time, I enjoy playing softball, golf, working on the farm, serving my community and spending time with friends and family. My family own and operates a 350-acre dairy farm where we milk 50 cows and also raise pigs, sheep and dairy-beef steers. For cash crops we grow corn, soybeans, alfalfa and oats. I served as the North Fayette FFA President, Fayette County Dairy Princess, and was a member of the Fayette Firecrackers 4-H Club. My future plans include transfer-ring to University of Northern Iowa to pursue my Bachelor’s degree in elementary education. Tell us a unique story you have from growing up or working on a farm. I come from a small town where everyone knows you by your rst name. A couple of years ago my family was faced with the obstacle of losing our house to re. Luckily, no one was inside at the time. Nonetheless, at that time in my family’s life we realized how blessed we were to be from a small agricultural community. Not only was everyone willing to help nd a temporary stay, but also wanted to make sure our farm well was taken care of, since the water had been shut off for long amount of time. What message do you think people need to hear most about dairy? I want to educate consumers that the dairy industry is vital to Iowa and the nation’s economy. As times get tough, farmers are faced everyday with challenges, but they persevere and let their passion be the initial drive for allowing them to do what they love to do most - farm. I believe passion is what keeps this industry alive and thriving. Passion is vital for future generations to continue the tradition of supplying nutritious, delicious and wholesome dairy products. Why is it important to you to run for Iowa Dairy Princess? Since being given the opportunity to run for the Iowa Dairy Princess, I feel I have already made an impact on lives whether it was educating consumers, communicating with dairy farmers or promoting the future aspiring princesses. If selected as Iowa Dairy Princess, I promise to continue to work hard on educating consumers about the nutritional value of dairy products and promoting the product itself with people behind the product. I am hon-ored to be able represent an industry I believe in, have passion for, and will continue to contribute to.

Representing Jackson/Clinton CountyTown: DeWitt Parents: Brad and Lisa GeiseTell us about yourself, the farm you live and/or work on and your future plans. I am a 2011 graduate from Central Community Schools-DeWitt. I am currently a sophomore at Ashford University in Clinton, Iowa, where I am majoring in elementary education with endorsements in reading and mathematics. I live and work on my fam-ily’s fourth generation dairy farm. We milk 60 Holsteins on our 120-acre farm east of DeWitt. I enjoy all aspects of the farm but my main responsibility is taking care of the calves. My family works very closely together to provide quality care for our animals, from our calves to our cows, so that they can produce wholesome, quality milk. We are proud to market our milk through Prairie Farms Dairy in Carlinville, Ill. Upon gradua-tion from college, I would like to nd a teaching position close to home so I can remain active on my family’s farm.Tell us a unique story you have from growing up or working on a farm. No two days are the same on a dairy farm. Each day something new is happening that makes it unique. We always have the daily chores that need to be done, but sometimes a storm blows through and we lose power, a gate gets left open and the cows get out, or one of the cows needs help calving. One of my earliest memories on the farm is when I was little and my dad would have to help me hold the bottle to feed the baby calves. Even though I couldn’t do much by myself, I learned about work ethic and responsibility as I worked alongside my dad. As I got older, I was given more responsibility and today I enjoy taking care of all our calves.What message do you think people need to hear most about dairy? Why? I think the most important message we need to share is the nutritional value of milk and the fact that it comes from local dairy farms in our community. Being born and raised in a rural community, I’m surprised by the number of my peers who, when asked the ques-tion “where does milk come from?” they honestly don’t know the correct answer. Milk is a wholesome, nutritious product that dairy farmers are proud to promote. Why is it important to you to run for Iowa Dairy Princess? My family’s involve-ment with the Jackson/Clinton County Dairy Association has given me the opportunity to promote dairy and take part in activities like our annual Lunch on the Dairy Farm. Being the Jackson/Clinton County Dairy Princess has been a fun and positive experi-ence. It would be an honor to be the Iowa Dairy Princess and be given the opportunity to promote dairy and its nutritional value throughout the great state of Iowa.

Iowa Dairy Princess Special Edition • Dairy Star • July 31, 2012 • Page 7

Brandi Oostra, 18

712-439-1101 | Fax: 712-439-1116hoksdsconst@yahoo.com

514 Main St. • Hull, Iowa 51239 www.hoksdsconst.com

GOOD LUCK BRANDI!

Logan Worden, 19

300 10th St. N.E.,Independence, IA 319-334-7193

Good Luck Logan!

Town: HullParents: Nelson and Wanda OostraTell us about yourself, the farm you live and/or work on and your future plans. The dairy I work at is a 400-cow dairy. At this dairy my main chores are to feed the calves and make sure they are healthy. I do not live on a dairy farm, but my father is employed as a service technician, serving many area dairies. Also, one of my sisters is a calf manager on a 1,000-cow dairy. My brother is going to college for a dairy science degree, and he works on a 2,000-cow dairy. My future plans are to attend Dordt College and major in middle school education with a minor in psychology. I also plan to continue to work on these dairies as I attend college.Tell us a unique story you have from growing up or working on a farm. Working on a dairy farm, I had a lot of unique experiences but my favorite moment was when my boss’s father drove me to prom in his new tractor. What message do you think people need to hear most about dairy? Why? The message I think people need to hear the most about dairy is how depen-dent our local economies are on the dairy industry. Not only are the products important for the peoples’ daily diets, but also for the daily survival of the economy.Why is it important to you to run for Iowa Dairy Princess? I want to be Iowa Dairy Princess so I can represent the hard-working dairy families in Iowa and inform the public of everything they do. Also, I want to continue to inform everyone of the importance of dairy in their daily diets. I would also like to inform the public on how much the economy is affected by the dairy industry.

Representing: Iowa Brown Swiss AssociationTown: OelweinParents: Dennis and Joan WordenTell us about yourself, the farm you live and/or work on and your future plans. My parents started Onword Swiss when they were married in 1979 and since then have established 250 acres of corn, soybeans, alfalfa and pasture ground on our rural Oelwein farm. Onword Swiss now consists of 180 total bovines with 90 being mature females and the other 90 youngstock. Cows are milked in a 60 tiestall barn twice a day and are fed a free-choice ration. We also raise all of our own replacement heifers. Bulls that are born on the farm are kept until a local calf-raiser buys them. I am in charge of feeding the calves on milk, milking, barn chores, and also taking care of the show cattle. I am able to use all of the knowledge I have learned on the farm at Iowa State University where I will be a junior this fall double-majoring in dairy science and agricultural business with hopes to nd a job in the dairy industry after school dealing with genetics, sales, or public relations. I also wish to come back to my family’s farm to be the next generation with my brothers. Tell us a unique story you have from growing up or working on a farm. I showed my rst heifer when I was 5 and it was very nerve racking. I was so little and it seemed that the calves were so big. Thankfully my family helped me break my calf, Wind-chime, to lead and helped me get a feel for how the show would work. I remember taking “laps” around the house to get Windchime used to the halter. Eventually show day came and unfortunately I didn’t win but the passion I discovered that summer has been instilled in my life ever since. What message do you think people need to hear most about dairy? Why? In this day and age, we have many individuals who are at least one generation removed from the farm. The best thing we can do as advocates is continue to educate the public in a positive and educational manor. The further each generation gets from the farm, the harder it is to get our dairy message across for future years. This is why we need to do our absolute best to promote the industry we know and love. Why is it important to you to run for Iowa Dairy Princess? I love the thought of talking to youngsters, the elderly, and all ages in between about where their milk comes from along with what types of food we feed our animals to help produce the most wholesome and nutritious dairy product possible. I would also love being able to represent all the dairy farmers across this state because of all the hard work they do and the passion they have for this always-amazing industry.