By Allie Cushnyr, Chair, Kern County Young Farmers & Ranchers
Now is your chance to get more involved, build your network, and make decisions about events throughout the year by attending the next meeting which includes a speaker and elections. Kern Young Farmers & Ranchers will be hosting the November meeting on November 3rd at 6:00pm at the new Farm Bureau office (1800 30th St. Suite 390, Bakersfield, CA 93301). We are thrilled to have Romeo Agbalog, Executive Director of the Kern County Farm Bureau (KCFB), speaking with us at this meeting. This is a great opportunity to get to know Romeo and learn about his role with Farm Bureau. Something many people probably don’t realize is that quite a few previous and current YF&R members are on the board of directors at the KCFB and very involved with the work they do.
To finish up the meeting, we will have our 2022 elections, where the 2022 Kern YF&R executive board will be elected. This is a great way to get involved with the group and help plan the year’s activities. All positions are open for election including: Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, and committee chair position(s). If you are new to the group and want to get involved, the committee chair positions are a great way to start. We always want people to feel like they are welcome to jump in feet first and run for one of the positions. Being present at the meeting is preferred if you would like to run, but you can still run for a position, even if you cannot be present. We do ask that if you are elected to a position that you become a Farm Bureau member, which is available at a discounted rate when you are in YF&R.
Interested in what the positions are? Here is a quick run down of the positions that were available in 2021 (may adjust a bit in 2022). Chair: run monthly meetings, attend & serve as a KCFB Director while in office, official voice of YF&R Committee & provide leadership to members, and write monthly articles for the Valley Ag Voice. Vice Chair: Fulfill chair duties in absence of chair, and assist with meetings & administration of activities. Secretary: Runs YF&R correspondence, maintains a current list of members, and records minutes from monthly meetings, along with agendas. Treasurer: Handles and records all financial transactions, creates and maintains annual budget, and presents budget when necessary. Activities Chair: coordinates and runs activities throughout the year including Farmer’s Market & social events.
As always, I want to share that being a part of the Kern County Young Farmers and Ranchers group comes at no cost, and we welcome everyone between 18-35 years old. This is a great group to be a part of to give back to the community, network with other professionals, and have a good time with friends. If you would like to jump on our email list to receive information about upcoming events, please reach out to us. We are also active on both Facebook and Instagram.
Email: KernYFR@KernCFB.com
Instagram: @KernYFR
Facebook: KernYoungFarmersAndRanchers
