Being "The Cow Friend"

My sister and I at a Jr. Limousin Show

Growing up, I was always "The Cow Friend"....Even-though I grew up in a very rural town in Mississippi, involvement in anything agriculture was pretty much left up to everyone's grandfather and maybe their dad.  But my sister and I  proudly carried the banner as "The Cow Friends". Now in high school I wouldn't have considered myself at Agvocate, I loved livestock and agriculture, but as far as educating others goes about the importance of agriculture, I considered that my dad's job.

Little International Beef Show for Block and Bridle

After graduating from high school I went to Community College first.  Here I was heavily involved in the Ag. Science club and the Livestock Judging Team.  The majority of my friend group were those in my major, on my judging team, or in the Ag. Science club.  No longer was I "The Cow Friend" I was constantly surrounded by other "cow friends".

Once I moved to Starkville to attend Mississippi State, I again found myself surrounded once again by others involved in and majoring in various fields of Agriculture.  I immediate got involved with the Block and Bridle club and the Collegiate Cattleman's Association...again I found myself as a "cow friend" among "cow friends".  It wasn't until the spring of my Junior year that I decided to join my fraternity.

I LOVE being around others involved in agriculture, however I found that I needed another outlet, one that allowed me to be myself, but where agriculture wasn't our defining reason for being friends.  By joining Sigma Nu I once again became "The Cow Friend".  Many of these guys had no knowledge of agriculture and they weren't afraid to ask questions and of course I wasn't afraid to answer their questions!  They asked me to take them to the South farm to show them the cattle.  They wanted to see the canulated steers, and they even wanted to come watch me T.A. my Physiology of Reproduction lab...they found it crazy that I would stick my arm up a cows butt!  But they were willing to learn about artificial insemination, and had  I not been "The Cow Friend" they would have never been exposed to these things.

Meats Judging at University of Florida

Soon after joining Sigma Nu, I got involved in the Meats judging team and the meats quiz bowl team...so then I became not only "The Cow Friend" but also "The Meat Friend".  I would actually get phone calls and picture messages from them as they were trying to buy steaks asking me which one they should get.  They learned that I'm not a fan of the Certified Angus Beef program--and they also learned why.  They learned about growth promoting hormones and then when it made national news they learned what "Pink Slime" actually is.

Often times we like to surround ourselves with like-minded people because our ideals and beliefs are accepted by those people, but we must ask ourselves "Who are we really reaching?".  As Agvocates, we have to remember that it takes stepping out of our comfortable friend zones to educate others about our industry.  So, get out there and be "The Cow Friend" or "The Chicken Friend" or "The Meat Friend"...whoever you are, get out there and be a friend of agriculture and BRIDGE THE GAP between your friends and our industry!