March is National Women’s History Month—and Hoosier Ag Today is proud to shine the spotlight on Annie’s Project, which is a non-profit organization that’s helping prepare women to become ag leaders.
“[We’re] dedicated to providing educational programs that are designed to strengthen women’s roles on today’s farms,” says Sam Schwoeppe, who serves as President of the Board of Directors of Annie’s Project. She’s also an Indiana dairy producer and owner of Schwoeppe Dairy Farm based near Huntingburg in Dubois County.
She says Annie’s Project provides educational resources and networking opportunities for women in agriculture.
“We have a lot of online free webinars, and we have some sessions called ‘In Just Plain Talk’, where we break down the jargon and the complicated things that we have to learn about planning risk management for our farms. We partner with the USDA and their Risk Management Agency (RMA) for risk management training. Your local Extension Office may offer an Annie’s Project educational opportunity as well.”
Annie’s Project was started in 2003 by University of Illinois Extension Educator Ruth Hambleton, as a tribute to her mother, Annette Kohlhagen Fleck, who had passed away in 1997. The program honors Annie’s entrepreneurship and her goal of raising a family and being an active partner in the family farm operation for more than 50 years.
Schwoeppe says she grown significantly as an ag leader, thanks to Annie’s Project. She said she first became aware of the organization about 20 years ago.
“That was when I was just beginning to make farm purchasing decisions for our family farm,” says Schwoeppe. “I learned very quickly what aspects of risk management I was not participating in and needed to do so, but then I also learned about grain marketing and where I was being taken advantage of price-wise and that saved us a considerable amount of money once I learned about contracting grain and how basis works—and when I should be charged basis and when I should not be charged basis.”
Learn more about Annie’s Project—at AnniesProject.org.
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