Gov. Kristi Noem was at Dakotafest on Thursday to hand out the “Woman Farmer of the Year” award, which went to Audra Scheel of Alpena.
“The work (in agriculture) you do every day is really the testimony of this state,” Noem said, addressing the crowd after awarding Scheel.
Along with Shield, other finalists were Tami Beaudry of Mitchell; Molly Nedved of Yankton; Amanda Peterson of Fedora; and Tangela Uttecht of Woonsocket.
Gov. Kristi Noem addresses the crowd at the Women in Agriculture Conference at Dakotafest on Thursday. From left, Gov. Noem, Glenn Kay, Eric Werth, Rebecca Wellenstein and ‘Woman Farmer of the Year’ finalists Tangela Uttecht, Audra Scheel, Amanda Peterson, Molly Nedved and Tami Beaudry.
The award was given out during the Women in Agriculture Conference held at Dakotafest on Thursday.
“Go home and tell the woman in your life that she’s everything to you, and tell her about all of the things she does for you,” Scheel said shortly after being announced as the 2021 award recipient.
The conference began with a panel conversation featuring four women involved in farming and ranching in South Dakota and was moderated by KMIT/MitchellNOW’s Renee Robbins.
On the panel: Suzanne Geppert, Executive Director of the South Dakota Beef Industry Council; Amanda Radke, agricultural speaker, beef blogger and western gift retailer; Cathy Eichacker, owner and operator of Eichacker Simmentals; and Shirley Thompson, Territory Business Manager with Zoetis.
