During our trip to Southwest Virginia, the theme that surfaced for me is the importance of the support structure that overlays the agriculture industry in this region. I will focus on how I saw the outpouring of assistance related to ag infrastructure in Southwest. It was apparent as we traveled at most every stop that… Continue reading The Structure Supporting Success in SWVA Agriculture
Our VALOR cohort’s tour of Kentucky was a great experience and the theme that rose to the top for me was a consumer focus: knowing & serving your niche. I want to thank our awesome tour guides, Dr. Steve Isaacs and Dr. Will Snell, for being excellent hosts, interpreters, and teachers as we traveled throughout… Continue reading Knowing your Niche in Kentucky
If the average Joe would look at my background, it may not make sense that I am a High School Career Coach. For those who are familiar with agriculture and what it entails would know that it makes perfect sense. My journey to where I am today is filled with career readiness and leadership opportunities… Continue reading Taking My Own Advice
South Africa is in an interesting time for agriculture, possibly a historical turning point. The crossroads of politics, social obligation and absolution, commerce, and history is a tricky, trying, profound place to be. It is not a place upon which one can make much judgement. A two week trip does not make one an expert. … Continue reading ZA – Making Sense of Things
Farming. What do you think of? Amber waves of grain? OshKosh B’gosh overall-clad children rolling in hay? The pitchfork-in-hand puritanically dressed couple of Grant Wood’s American Gothic? A pastoral way of life? On a recent trip to South Africa, I learned farming had a different look. There, farming looked like 10-foot chain-link fences topped with… Continue reading Farming in S. Africa, A Different Reality
My brain keeps telling me to post recaps of Vietnam, while simultaneously screaming at me to close my eyes and go to bed. Who knew that jet lag created multiple personalities? Mark that one down on the books. The purpose of our trip to Vietnam was to specifically look at culture, history, and of course… Continue reading If Christmas can have 12 days, so can Vietnam
The last time I posted, post-Florida and pre-Vietnam, I spoke about the gift of perspective while traveling. After 24 straight hours of travel time yesterday, the VALOR fellows walked off a plane (some more awake than others) and into a country and culture vastly different than our normal. Today began with a trip to the… Continue reading Lessons from Around the World
Leaving your county, or state, or country (as the case will be shortly for the VALOR fellows) imparts a gift of perspective. Not a gift to be taken lightly, it takes processing and production by the user in order to create anything of value. I can travel to another state or country, but if I… Continue reading The Gift
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