Indiana Farm Bureau Convention report

     Returned from Convention last Saturday and instead of reprinting some of their news reports I will try to give you what Patti and I can recall participating in.  We arrived at the Indiana Farm Bureau office at about 11a.m. on Thursday to attend the new County President meeting.  Introductions was one of the main focus points as all the new Presidents introduced themselves and told us a little about their County Farm Bureaus and their occupations.  During the meeting I was able to talk to Dr. Julie Volbers-Klarich who is the Professional Development Coordinator.  Julie will be attending our January meeting to discuss our Mission and Vision Statements and how it relates to our responsibilities as Farm Bureau directors.  She has also agreed to be our guest speaker at our annual meeting scheduled for Feb. 22 at noon in the Fairgrounds Community Building.  After lunch we headed to the JW Marriott and got checked in before our 2 pm County Leaders meeting.  We were assigned seats and met several other County Leaders as we discussed various thoughts and questions concerning Farm Bureau.  Friday began with more leadership training as I attended the Public Relations session, Patti attended the session for Secretaries, David Greenburg attended the session for Policy Chairs.  During the convention we attended the Trade Show at various times.  Patti did some Gourd Painting and I attended a program on Grain Bin Safety.  On Saturday Patti and I were the top bidder on an item provided for the Young Farmer Silent Auction.  David was able to attend the Fertilizer Use Regulations session and I attended the Legislative session with Former Republican Chair Mike McDaniel and Democrat chair Robin Winston.  The first general session was highlighted by many awards being presented.  Friday afternoon I attended the County Gov. Budget issues session along with our State Rep. Jim Baird.  Patti and I were also able to catch the Young Farmer Discussion Meet Finals that afternoon.  On Saturday we visited the trade show along with attending a session on Building Consumer Confidence and Trust in Today's Agriculture presented by a representative of the US Farmers and Ranchers Alliance.  During the closing general session I received the County Recognition award for our county's work for the year.  Patti, Dave, and I finished up the convention with the delegate session where Don Villwock was re-elected State FB President.  Those attending the Convention from Putnam County included Steve and Patti Cash, David Greenburg, and Mark and Phyllis Legan.