Farmer's Daughter: Summer Recap

Posted: 8/3/2016

It is crazy to think that this is the last week of my internship with Ag United for South Dakota.  In my two summers as an intern for the organization, I have been provided with opportunities to try new things, meet many great people and learn so much about the Ag industry.  Below is a recap of my summer! 

The month of June started off running, taking me to Milbank for Cheeseburger Day, Brookings for Dairy Fest and the Got Milk Gala, and then straight to Spearfish to hand out milk at the Mickelson Marathon.  Now this sounds like a lot to do in a month, but it all happened in just 4 days!  

Since June is Dairy Month, it is fitting that we kept busy with three dairy open houses.  Starting at Dairy Fest, we then moved to MoDak Dairy Day and ended with Breakfast on the Farm.  These events were really fun as I got to see all of the work that we did in the office come to life.  It was  also fun to bring my friends along to have them help at these events and give them a chance to see what it is that I do as an intern.   

Our schedule didn’t slow down as we moved into July.  We stayed busy with two more open houses and three evening tours. The evening tours were really an eye opening experience as I was able to see children and adults make connections about where their food comes from. This internship has made me realize that there is a disconnect between consumers and those producing their food and that educating the public about food production is extremely important for this industry.

Now moving into August, I am finishing out my intership in the Dairy Bar at the Sioux Empire Fair.  That’s right, nine days of ice cream for every meal!  Maybe not quite that extreme, but it is hard to resist those malts.  Along with working in the Dairy Bar, I will get to help in the Pipestone Discovery Barn. 

Adding a few daycare visits, golf tournaments, and tours with various industry groups, to the events previously listed, equals one busy summer!   The events were not the only thing to occupy my time, I also monitored our social media pages with over 13,000 combined followers.  This part of the job gave me a chance to practice some design skills and put the marketing classes that I have taken at SDSU to use!  We also started a Snapchat account this summer for SD Farm Families, so be sure to follow us!

The best part about my internship has been meeting and working with some great people.  The people who I have met over the past two years have taught me so much and have made a huge impact on me.  As I finish my reflection of the summer, I want to say thank you to all of the people I have been able to work with and to everyone who has supported me in this position.  It has been an incredible experience!

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