LIA Briefs

Congratulations to Rosana Rieth, Class 36, and her husband, Nick, on the birth of Kassidy Mary on September 13. Kassidy weighed in at 7 lbs. 9 oz. and joins big sister, Aislynn.  Rosana is a member of the LIA Board of Trustees and works for NRCS in Challis.
 
Not to be outdone, Zach Hasenoehrl, Class 36, and his wife, Shauna, welcomed Elis Adeline on September 18, weighing 9 lbs., and 21” long. Zach is employed by CHS Primeland as the Camas Prairie Grain Origination and Marketing Supervisor.
 
Our sympathy is extended to Jen Root, Class 35, in the passing of her grandmother. Our prayers and thoughts are with Jen and her family in the loss of their family matriarch. Jen is the director of the Development Office at U of I CALS.
 
Brent Stanger, Class 18, has worked as an independent rural appraiser for the past 25 years. He has recently joined the team at Farmers National Company based in Omaha, NE. Brent will cover ID, OR, and WA, providing services in real estate, rural appraisal, farm management, natural resource management, and consulting. Brent will continue to reside in Twin Falls.
 
John Zietz, Class 34, has changed positions at Cargill in West Fargo, ND, after working in the malt barley industry for over 15 years.  He has joined the oilseed team as the Seed Origination Manager and is responsible for the production of flax, canola, and sunflowers. John was with IntraGrow Malt when he was in Idaho and participated in LIA.
 
At the recent Idaho Ag in the Classroom Annual Meeting, Advocate for Agriculture awards were presented to the following LIA alumni:  Dr. Mike Thornton, Class 12, Plant Science Division Chair for U of I CALS, based at the Parma R and E Center; and Jim Lowe, Class 31, owner of The Farmstead Corn Maze and Pumpkin Festival in Meridian. Both gentlemen serve on the Idaho AITC Board of Directors.
 
The LIA Board of Trustees has decided to discontinue their annual meeting as part of the Boise Session. The task of working through the governance of the Foundation without a formal annual meeting has been assigned to the LIA Advisory Committee. We will keep you posted on the next step in that decision.
 
The Annual LIA Alumni Gala Dinner and Auction will be held on Wednesday night, February 22, at the Boise Centre in downtown Boise. This is the second year for the auction at this expanded facility. The Auction Committee has already held a preliminary meeting to begin plans for the 2017 event. NOTE: If you would like to serve on the Auction Committee,
please contact Rick at [email protected].
 
The Fund Development Committee is working in cooperation with the Alumni Committee to develop an Alumni/Industry Golf Tournament to be held in Magic Valley in the spring of 2017. We will keep you posted on the plans as they develop.
 
LIA Regional Events will be held during each of the four Class 37 sessions.
The dates are as follows:
North Idaho - Wednesday, November 9
Eastern Idaho - Tuesday, December 6
Magic Valley - Wednesday, January 4
Boise - Tuesday, February 21
Locations have not been determined at this time. Special mailings will be sent out to provide you specific information concerning the event in your area.