Recognize Your Worth

By Jim Sargent

I recently attended the FUSION Conference in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which brought together more than 1,200 Farm Bureau volunteer leaders from across the country from Promotion & Education, Women’s Leadership and Young Farmers & Ranchers programs.

What a remarkable trip to see fellow agriculturalists come together in one place and tell their stories about how and why they believe ag is a mainstay in America!

As an ag broadcaster and member of the Montana Farm Bureau and its P&E Committee, it was a pleasure to visit with other members from around the country who deal with concerns and issues that affect all aspects of agriculture production.

With my background of reporting on farming and ranching concerns our ag folks deal with on a regular basis, I found the message from Redmond Ramos inspiring.

What an amazing outlook on life Redmond presented! His positive, “second chance on life” message should be an inspiration to us all. Redmond was injured serving our country, eventually losing his leg. As a corpsman in the United States Marine Corps, he was defending and protecting you and me, so we could celebrate the freedoms many take for granted.

Redmond brought a message of hope that we all should hear loud and clear. Stop whining, stop feeling sorry for yourself and go out and get it done. For example, in the Amazing Race he was asked to row a boat with his feet, although he only has one. He didn’t feel handicapped or pity for himself. Instead, he described the need to ask others for help and be willing to accept what you can and can’t control. In the world of ag, we need to do that as well. Seek help, accept what you can control and what you cannot, but always continue to recognize your worth in ag production. We can all take away a valuable lesson and an inspirational message to share.

I’m thankful for the opportunity to attend a conference where all attendees gained knowledge and inspiration to successfully continue in the world of agriculture.

Jim Sargent is an ag broadcaster and Farm Bureau member in Montana. This column was originally published as a Montana Farm Bureau blog post.