GUELPH, ON – Lauren Benoit, Tamara Hamilton and Megan Wright all received a special education bursary from the Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA) yesterday at the organization’s annual meeting. The three Ontario university students will each receive $2,000 towards their continuing agricultural education. Bursary funds were raised through a silent auction at OFA’s annual general meeting. This is the third year OFA has awarded the bursary to OFA family members, choosing these three from 37 entries.
“These bursaries are an investment in future farm leaders and advocates,” says OFA President Keith Currie. “As our industry gets more complex and works to get closer to the consumer, we need advocates more than ever before. These three students are already making a difference in our industry and we are happy to be able to provide some financial support.”
Lauren Benoit is a junior partner in her family’s grain farm at Kirkton where she’s responsible for crop marketing strategies. She’s completing her Masters of Science in Plant Agriculture at the University of Guelph, focusing on the control of multiple-resistant common waterhemp in corn, and she’s a member of the Grain Farmers of Ontario research and innovation subcommittee. After she finishes her graduate work, Lauren intends to continue her work on the family farm integrating precision agriculture to reduce the farm’s environmental footprint. She’ll also pursue an off-farm career that combines her interests in agronomy, policy, research and business, and hopes to give back to 4-H and mentor Ontario Agricultural College (OAC) students.
Tamara Hamilton is completing her fourth year of a Bachelor of Bio Resource Management-Environmental Science program at the University of Guelph. She’s active on the family dairy farm at Russell, developing nutrition and breeding programs. She is involved in many livestock clubs and organizations, where she has met industry leaders and innovators. Tamara has spend several summers working with feed and seed dealerships in eastern Ontario. She’s also worked on a dairy farm in Switzerland and hopes to continue to travel and work abroad on dairy farms, bringing back new knowledge to her home farm.
Megan Wright is in her fourth year of the Bachelor of Commerce, Food and Agriculture Business program at the University of Guelph. From a dairy farm in Midhurst, Megan has been an active 4-Her and throughout her university years has been involved in OAC class executive, the OAC Leadership Conference and was selected for the student chapter of the Canadian Agri-Marketing Association that earned the team 2nd place in an international marketing competition. Megan is looking forward to a career in agricultural marketing and communications where she can share her knowledge of agriculture with Canadian consumers.
The Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA) is the largest general farm organization in Ontario, representing 38,000 farm families across the province. As a dynamic farmer-led organization based in Guelph, the OFA works to represent and champion the interests of Ontario farmers through government relations, farm policy recommendations, research, lobby efforts, community representation, media relations and more. OFA is the leading advocate for Ontario’s farmers and is Ontario’s voice of the farmer.
For more information:
Keith Currie
President
Ontario Federation of Agriculture
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Neil Currie
General Manager
Ontario Federation of Agriculture
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