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Pride in the Prairie

New Terry & Sherrie Martin Community Agtivity Fund Terry Martin is deeply passionate about the rural landscape. For years he helped preserve and restore prairies throughout DeKalb County – prairies on his farmstead, at local forest preserves and at the community college. Terry and Sherrie Martin established their own prairie restoration plot on ...read more

Teacher Feature – Sarah Peterson

Teaching School: DeKalb High SchoolGrades: 9-12Subjects: Horticulture, Animal Science, Plant ScienceNumber of years teaching: 11Farm Bureau/Ag Literacy connection: I have worked with the Farm Bureau throughout my teaching career. The connection to the Farm Bureau through their various programs is a huge asset to my students. I also served as the ...read more

Away in a Manger

When Pastor Janet Hunt with First Lutheran Church of DeKalb heard of churches doing a “barn service” on Christmas Eve, she knew it was an idea she wanted to pursue. “We hear in the Christmas story that Jesus was born in a place where animals were fed and sheltered. This service ...read more

Treasuring Trains

Whether it’s a classic Lionel model train or the more modern Thomas the Tank Engine, toy trains are treasured, especially during the holidays. Steve Faivre’s interest in model trains started at an early age. “When I was a kid I had a steam locomotive, a few train cars and some race cars,” ...read more

Teacher Feature – Jill Schmitt

Teaching School: Lynn G. Haskin School, SandwichGrades: KindergartenSubjects: All of them!Number of years teaching: 29Farm Bureau/Ag Literacy connection: I use many Ag Literacy resources in my classroom.What is your favorite unit to teach? I love teaching the students in the Fall. There are so many things to focus on while encouraging ...read more

Cherished Farm Memories Leave Lasting Legacy

Family honors memories by establishing a new George W. “Bill” and Ann Marie Stanley Scholarship To honor these cherished farm memories of Ann Marie and her husband Bill Stanley, their family has established an endowed scholarship in their names with the DeKalb County Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture. George W. “Bill” and ...read more

Students Earn American FFA Degree

At this year’s National FFA Convention, 11 FFA students from DeKalb County chapters earned their American FFA Degree. They are: Jessica Carlson, Somonauk-Leland-Sandwich FFA; Hayley Foss, Genoa-Kingston FFA; Kendal Hawbaker and Madeline Noble, Hinckley-Big Rock FFA; Jared Clausen, Allie Drake, Tyler Ekstrom, Morgan Fidler, Max Griffey, Jesse Mantzke, and Jaedyn Slutz, ...read more

Horsepower

Big rigs and horses define this farm woman There’s nothing quite like driving an 18-wheeler full of grain, says Malta farm woman Dawn Stohecker. She drives big rigs for Reid Farms. “I’ve always liked big trucks,” said Dawn. “Peterbilt is my favorite.” She lights up describing the farm’s newly purchased Peterbilt 389 with ...read more

Teacher Feature – Jenny Wold

Teaching Schools: Somonauk High School and Leland Middle School/High SchoolGrades: 6th-12thSubjects: Agriculture and Food ScienceNumber of years teaching: 6Farm Bureau/Ag Literacy connection: I served as the Kendall County Ag in the Classroom Coordinator for 11 years. While I loved it, I missed working with high school students and being an FFA ...read more

Prairie State of Mind

It’s been nearly 25 years since Prairie State Winery began making wine. They were the first commercial winery in DeKalb County. Prairie State Winery was established in 1998, a time when there were very few wineries in Illinois. They were number 16. Now there are about 165 wineries in the prairie ...read more