As I write this month’s column, the sun is shining. The snow piles are getting smaller. The weatherman says our thermometers will hit 70 degrees, and the fields are starting to show different shades of grays and black.

No matter who you are, what your occupation is or where you live, spring is a wonderful time of year. In agriculture, it is a time of excitement. A time to put in place the plans thought about all winter. A time to put your seeds in the ground, and put your faith in God to provide the weather to produce a bountiful crop.

Think Safety
With spring comes more vehicles and machinery on our roads. Farm equipment is wider and slower than automobiles. Drivers, please watch for our farm equipment on the roadways, allow plenty of space and watch for those sudden turns into the farm fields.

Farmers, please make sure that the slow moving vehicle emblem is clean, turn on your lights, use your turn signals and watch out for the other vehicles. When handling crop protection products, please read and follow all safety precautions on the label including wearing the proper personal protection equipment.

Think Farm Bureau Policy
Many of you have already participated in planting the Farm Bureau policy implementation seeds. County Presidents have attended the Council of County Presidents to hear from state legislators and agency officials. Many counties have sent representatives to the Farmers to Washington, D.C. trip. Many of you have attended one of the Day on the Hill events at our State Capitol including the Ag Week Celebration.

Thank you for your time, our Farm Bureau presence has been noticed! Please continue to keep in contact with your policy makers through town hall meetings, letters, email or even those cell phone calls from the tractor seat while planting. We all need to work together to implement our Farm Bureau policies at the local, state and national level.

Think – New Advocates
The Red, White and You Teen Leadership Conference for students entering eighth through tenth grades will be held June 28-30 at Gustavus Aldophus College in St. Peter. Youth attendees will view the responsibilities associated with our freedoms and evaluate how they can personally grow as a leader.

The Minnesota Ambassador Institute for 16-24 year olds will be held June 14-16 in Mankato. This institute focuses on providing practical skills for life and leadership for young people serving as an agriculture commodity ambassador or leader.

The Agricultural Literacy Institute is geared towards educators, administrators, career/guidance counselors and/or board of education members. This conference will be held at South Central College in North Mankato June 28 – July 1 from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. The focus is on the importance of agriculture in our daily lives and to promote learning to help people better understand the interrelationships among agriculture, the environment and people of the world. Attendees will leave with new resources and hands on teaching ideas.

Everyone of these activities enable us to better carry out our mission to be an advocate for agriculture based on the beliefs and policies of our members.