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On July 14, several alumni and guests boarded a charter bus from Meridian and traveled through southern Idaho, making stops in Burley and Pocatello, with a final destination of Soda Springs and a tour of the Bayer mine and plant operation. We were hosted as royalty by the staff at Bayer, thanks to the hard work and coordination by Ethan Waltermire, Class 45. We returned to Meridian around 11:15 PM that evening. Those attending the tour included:
Sympathy is extended to the family of Gary Steed, Class 28, who passed away recently. Gary’s son Garth attended the same class as his dad. It was our first time having a father and son team go through LIA in the same class. Gary lived in Malta, Idaho with his wife Sonya, where he was involved in Western Marketing LLC as a managing member. Congratulations to Jake Brisco, Class 42 and wife Courtney on the birth of their third child, Benjamin Scott, born on June 9. He joins a big sister and brother. Jake farms with Scott Bennet Farms as the farm manager. The farm is located in Grandview. Sarah Seymour, Class 45 writes: I'm looking for three judges for this year's Cassia County Fair and Rodeo Queen competition. Interested persons will need to have basic knowledge of rodeo and horsemanship, I'll provide score sheets, questions to choose from etc. The competition is comprised of horsemanship, a brief horsemanship-centered interview, prepared 2-5 minute speeches, public impromptu questions, and personal interviews. Horsemanship will take place on Friday, August 8, 2025, at the Cassia County Fairgrounds in Burley beginning at 9:00 am. Horsemanship interviews will be immediately following at the fair office. Speeches/questions/personal interviews will be the same day, 6:00 pm in Burley (location is currently pending confirmation). We do compensate our judges for their time and mileage! Please let me know if you have anyone in mind that I could reach out to, or feel free to have them contact me! If you are interested contact Sarah at 208-670-1384. Congratulations to Jay Sutton, Class 38, who was married to Molly Swabb on June 21, 2025, in McCall. In Jay’s words: We had all 4 seasons in one day! Rain, Hail, Wind, and Sunshine. It cleared for 40 minutes, and our ceremony was beautiful! Molly works for MWI Animal Health as a Strategic Account Administrator. Jay works for Seminis Vegetable Seeds (Bayer) as a Testing Research Associate. Jace Johnson, Class 40 wrote recently: My last day at my current job with The Mart Group will be August 8. After that, I will be moving to Three Rivers, Michigan, to begin working as an agronomist for Walther Farms. Best wishes to Jace and his wife Micah, and their six children as they relocate to their new home and work in Michigan. The second LIA Golf Scramble held in Payette on July 17 was very successful with very little time to advertise. Thanks to those who had teams that competed. The teams at the Scramble included:
The hole sponsors for the Payette Scramble were as follows:
Alan Heikkila, Class 13, has retired as the Ag Instructor at Meridian High School after 37 years of teaching. Alan started his career in Pocatello at Highland High School before coming to Meridian. Alan is a Lifetime LIA member and has been an active leader in the state wide organization for Ag Teachers for several years. Alan and his wife Gaye have two of their three children that are also ag teachers. Some are aware that Alan is the one responsible for coordinating the FFA students who assist with the annual LIA Gala and Auction each year. Congratulations to Jayde Wilson, Class 44, and husband Hunter recently moved into a new home in Buhl. Jayde is employed at Glanbia Nutritional’s in Twin Falls. Thoughts and prayers are being sent to Mark Nelson, Class 16. Mark recently experienced a massive heart attack resulting in quadruple bypass surgery. A procedure that should have taken 3-4 days in the hospital turned into eleven days for Mark. He is home now under the watchful care of his wife Victoria. Mark is a mint buyer for AM Todd Company. LIA ALUMNI: Remember now is the time to get your updates to the LIA office for the 2025-2026 LIA Alumni Directory. Changes may be made through the website at www.leadershipidahoag.org. Please be sure to list all changes that need to be made. If any spaces are left blank, we will repeat the information currently in the draft. The new membership year for LIA started July 1. You can update your membership for the yearly or Lifetime status online at www.leadershipidahoag.org. August 1 is the deadline for applications for LIA Class 46. Be sure you notify friends, work associates and leaders in your community of this deadline. The application is available online on the LIA webpage. Tuition for Class 46 is $3300. The dates for the four locations are as follows: Nov 3-6 (Monday evening – 2:00 PM Thursday)............. Moscow (University Inn) Dec 1-4 (Monday evening – 2:00 PM Thursday)............. Idaho Falls (Holiday Inn & Suites) Jan 19-23 (Monday evening – 2:00 PM Friday).................. Twin Falls (Marriott TownePlace Suites) Feb 15-20 (Sunday evening – 2:00 PM Friday).................. Boise (Hilton Garden Inn Downtown) Feb 18 Gala Dinner and Auction (Wednesday)............. Boise (Boise Centre)
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