CALF_News_June_July_2018

29 CALF News • June | July 2018 • www.calfnews.net young stockman R CALF NEWS PRESENTS R By Aly McClure Contributing Editor • Concrete cattle feeders • Freeze-proof pond tank • Fence line feeder THIS AIN’T NO BULL • Super-Tanker fence line freeze-proof stock tank TRACTOR TRAILER DELIVERY AVAILABLE IN THE CONTINTENTAL U.S. THE CONCRETE WORKS LLC • 877-464-7575 WWW.THECONCRETEWORKS.COM BEST PRICE QUALITY SERVICE SERVING THE MIDWEST FOR OVER 20 YEARS! Passion is contagious and it radiates off of Shaylee Wallace . I had the pleasure of meeting her this past spring as she and some fellow classmates visited western Kansas and toured our feedyard facility as a part of their trip. With a camera attached to her hip, Shaylee is all in when it comes to raising healthy and efficient cattle and sharing this lifestyle with the world. with a bachelor’s in agriculture animal sci- ence; I also minored in communications. College afforded me opportunities beyond what I could have imagined. I was able to do things like represent agriculture and Farm Bureau in Washington, D.C., learn how to develop a cattle production sale, and even how to auctioneer for the sale... although I wasn’t very good at it. I was blessed to be able to gear my degree toward cattle production and advocacy. I really focused on production improvement and doing more with less. As I close out my undergrad studies, I have become more and more involved with the management of our operation. After my dad’s cancer diagnosis in 2014, we sold most of our livestock. Now, four years later and with a clean bill of health, things are starting to pick up again. I know we’ll spend a lot of this summer on horseback and working on custom hay. Dad and I own a small herd of goats together and I just bought my first handful of registered Black Angus cattle to begin my own herd. Everyone starts somewhere, so as a college grad I’m still proud of where I am and how hard I’ve worked to get here. I genuinely love the work and sharing with I can’t remember a time when I didn’t love to talk about cattle. Even as a young girl, my excitement regarding bovine was borderline obsessive. Being the daughter of a rough-riding cowboy, I grew up sur- rounded by cattle, horses and machinery on our fourth-generation farm in southwest Missouri. My love of agriculture followed me all the way through college where I served as a Missouri State FFA officer and Collegiate Farm Bureau officer. In my time at College of the Ozarks, I was exposed to production agriculture involving dairy cattle, hogs and market produce. I graduated on May 13 people what I do and why I do it. Teaching others about the logic and practices behind my livestock operation is important to me. I know I can reach a larger audience through photos, writing and media. The more people relate to us as agriculturalists, the more they’ll believe in what we do. I hope to pursue my master’s in agriculture communications this fall while continu- ing to grow my herd of cattle. I know that God’s calling for my life is unique. My hope is that because of my involvement in agriculture advocacy and livestock produc- tion my influence will continue to grow as I do. Congratulations on your recent gradu- ation, Shaylee, and best of luck in your continued education and career raising beef cattle. 