FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
April 17, 2007

For more information contact:
Kim Porter
LEAD Program Manager
Wyoming Business Council
Office: 307.777.6319

Tom Lacock
Senior Marketing and Public Relations Specialist
Wyoming Business Council
Office: 307.777.2834

LEAD Class IX graduates in Saratoga

CHEYENNE - Despite a spring storm which dumped better than a foot of snow across the Cowboy State, the Wyoming Business Council’s Agribusiness Division held graduation ceremonies for the ninth Wyoming Leadership Education and Development (LEAD) class March 30 in Saratoga.

The Wyoming LEAD program is designed for individuals involved in production agriculture or agribusiness. The program strives to enhance participants’ broad-based knowledge, decision-making abilities and leadership skills for a sustainable agriculture in Wyoming. To date the Wyoming LEAD program has 154 graduates including three members of the Wyoming Legislature – Rep. Lisa Shepperson (R-Casper); Sen. Curt Meier (R-LaGrange) and Rep. Frank Philip (R-Shoshoni).

While weather kept five LEAD graduates, most from especially hard-hit northern Wyoming, from attending the ceremony another 37 attendees did make it to the Fireman’s Hall in Saratoga including Rep. Jeb Steward (R-Encampment) and Wyoming Business Council CEO Tucker Fagan, who opened the event by speaking on the importance of leadership and how it ties into community success.

According to Cindy Garretson-Weibel, Wyoming Business Council Agribusiness Division Director, the class was required to complete a project which addressed a community need. L.E.A.D. Class IX opted to do a 50/50 raffle that generated $2586 for the Wyoming Food Bank of the Rockies, exceeding the class goal of $1,500.  The 50/50 raffle award winner, named at the graduation ceremony, was Martha Hellyer of Lander - who donated $439 back to the Food Bank.

Currently recruiting is underway for LEAD Class X, which will start in the fall of 2007. Up to 18 participants are selected after going through a process involving an application and interview with the selection committee. The application deadline for LEAD Class X is July 31, 2007. Anyone interested should contact Kim Porter at 777.6319 or kim.porter@wybusiness.org.

The graduates in this year’s class are:
MERIDEN - Trevor Petsch of Meriden is a partner with Petsch Farms LLC in Laramie County. The operation is a 30,000 acre family owned and operated ranch, which runs about 2,000 head of Maine/Angus crossbred cows. Petsch, a naval reservist, was called to active duty and left two days after the ceremony to serve our country for one year.

CHEYENNE - Curt Aschenbrenner of Cheyenne is a crop advisor for Farmers Elevator Company, advising farmers and ranchers in Pine Bluffs and Torrington.

DOUGLAS - Larry Steinle of Douglas is a ranch manager for the Steinle Ranch near Douglas. He also has a fall archery outfitting business.

DOUGLAS - Aaron Clausen of Douglas works on the family ranch and raises irrigated hay and cattle. He also leases other ranches and runs stocker cattle while raising his own cow/calf pairs.

JACKSON - Kate Mead, Jackson, is a partner in the firm of Mead & Mead, while also acting as managing partner of Jackson Hole Natural Beef, LLC.

GRANITE CANON - Brenda Johnson is the manager for the Willadsen Brothers Ranch near Granite Canon, where she works with cow/calf management, marketing, range improvement, hay production and machinery maintenance.

KAYCEE - Dale Graves is the ranch manager for Red Fork Ranch near Kaycee.

BUFFALO - Bryna Long is a Buffalo native and trains horses throughout the country.

LYMAN - Annette France of Lyman is currently working as the office manager for the local Farm Bureau. She was recently elected to the Wyoming Agricultural Leadership Council Board of Directors.

LaBARGE - Mary Jones, formerly of LaBarge, now resides in Iowa and works for the National Ag Statistics Service as an ag statistician.

LYONS VALLEY - Timmery Hellyer works on her family’s cow/calf operation in Lyons Valley. Hellyer also works in the ranch real estate business, marketing ranches and recreational properties.

LARAMIE - Laramie’s Tiffany Reed received her Masters’ Degree in Veterinary Pathobiology from the University of Wyoming and has several years experience as a veterinary assistant. She currently owns Triple T Home Sales LLC and will be starting school this spring to finish her Veterinary Degree.

THERMOPOLIS - Amber Wallingford, Thermopolis, is the Washakie County 4-H program associate through the University of Wyoming Cooperative Extension Service.

SAVERY - Savery resident Meghan Lally is the ranch manager for Ladder Livestock Company, a cattle and sheep operation.

ENCAMPMENT - Irene Archibald is the office manager at Silver Spur Land and Cattle, a cattle/hay operation near Encampment which runs about 9,000 commercial head of cattle and horses in Southern Wyoming and Northern Colorado.

SHERIDAN - Irv Bard, Sheridan, is a financial officer at Farm Credit Services of America in the agricultural lending department.

LaGRANGE - Kevin Haas, LaGrange, is the owner, operator and managing partner of KHaas-Way Abilities, a custom clipping and fitting enterprise. Haas also has a small herd of Angus cattle.

The mission of the Wyoming Business Council is to facilitate the economic growth of Wyoming. For more information, please visit our Web site at www.wyomingbusiness.org.
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