AgFest Week/Behind the Blogger:Miles Theurer

Hello all! My name is Miles Theurer and I am a Senior hear at Kansas State majoring in Animal Science/Pre-Vet. I will be starting veterinarian school this fall. I grew up on a family farm and cow/calf operation and have been around production agriculture my entire life, so I have seen and put in the hard work, sweat, and tears needed to be involved with the livestock industry. I know how much work, effort, and mainly care producers put into ag because this is their passion. Their families have been involved with ag for several generations and know that the livestock are the most important thing for them. They also want to be able to pass their operation on to their kids and grandkids.

Anyway, enough about me. I wanted to make people aware of an event in the College of Ag that is put on for ag awareness and education-AgFest Week April 5-9. AgFest Week is a week long event that showcases the College of Ag to the rest of the university and the entire state of Kansas. This event is packed for educational events throughout the week.

On Monday, April 5th at 7PM in Forum Hall in the Student Union there is an informational panel of Climate Change and its Effect on Agriculture. The panel consists of Representative Sharon Schwartz, Kansas Secretary of Agriculture Josh Svaty, and Dr. Clenton Owensby from the Agronomy department. This will be a great opportunity to learn about the current climate change legislation and its effect, and also what ag actually contributes to climate change.

Tuesday, April 6th involves Ag Olympics. Ag Olympics is an opportunity to interact with each and have some fun. Everyone likes to do an obstacle course and have a little competition.

Students participating will be interacting in the business world in
the future, so this is just a way to step back and get to know people
on a different level.

Wednesday, April 7th Ag Council puts on one of most educational events-Kiddie Barnyard. Kiddie Barnyard is a great opportunity to educate the youth of Kansas on where their food comes from. With the increasing distance between rural and urban America, there are a lot of people that think milk comes from the store-which is not so. Education is critical for the continued success of production agriculture.

Thursday involves a free BBQ on Weber Lawn! AgFest BBQ is sponsored by the Alpha Gamma Rho and FarmHouse fraternities. Everyone enjoys a good meal and this year will be no different. Getting people together and conversing over a pulled pork sandwich always makes for a good time.

The grand finale of AgFest week is the concert. This year the headline artist is Jack Ingram and the Jared Daniels Band will open. The great thing about this concert is that it is a benefit concert for the Multiple Sclerosis Society. Last year, we were able to donate $7000 to the Kansas Multiple Sclerosis Society for research for one of the most underfunded diseases. Students enjoy going to the concert and having a good time, while still helping raise money for a good cause.

If you have any questions about any of the events or would like tickets for the concert, email me at milestheurer@gmail.com or call at (620) 440-1554. I hope to see you at some of these events next week!