LIA Briefs

Congratulations to all the high school and college graduates of LIA Alumni families. There have been way too many to keep track of to make a list and we know we would forget some. Exciting times in these chapters in life for your children and grandchildren. Best wishes for their next step.

Congratulations to Nic Usabel, Class 42, for being named by the Idaho Business Review for Accomplished Under 40. Nic works for the U of I Extension System in Caldwell. 

Rep. Caroline Nilsson Troy, R-Genesee, Class 15, is retiring from the Legislature at the end of her current term and has been named the new special assistant to the president of the University of Idaho for state and governmental relations. Caroline will start the post July 1.

The May 17th primary elections produced several mixed results in the LIA ranks.
Congratulations to Laurie Lickley, Affiliate Member who won her election for a seat in the Senate, to Steve Miller, Class 29, former State Representative will be running for the Idaho House in November and to Karma Metzler Fitzgerald, Class 41, who was unopposed in the primary for her race for the Idaho House and will be on the ballot in November. Several LIA alumni were elected as local precinct chairman. Nic Wittman, Class 39, ran in the primary as a precinct committeeman for the Republican party and was elected. During the party reorganization process, Nic was then elected by the precinct committeemen of the county, as the Jerome County Republican Central Committee chairman.

Congratulations to Brad Griff, Class 36, who recently accepted a government affairs position with an energy company in Houston, Texas. Brad’s last day as Executive Director of the Snake River Sugarbeet Growers Association will be June 10th. The family plans to relocate to Texas by the end of June. 

Congratulations to Travis Jones, Class 28, and Kendra Dustin, Class 32, who were recently named to the Caldwell Night Rodeo Associate Board. Travis works for Strategies 360 in governmental affairs and Kendra owns a consulting business, plus serves as the LIA Development Director. 

Our hearts are with the Tyler Hepworth, Class 35, family as they suffered the loss of Tyler this past week. We had posted that Tyler had gone missing and they believed he was in the Cassia – Minidoka area. Tyler was discovered in the mountains near Rupert a few days after the posting. Our thoughts and prayers are with Rachelle and his children. 

Reminder of some important dates:

• July 1 – Applications are due for Governor Awards for Excellence in Agriculture
• August 1 – Applications are due for LIA Class 43 that begins in November

Idaho recently hosted the State Agriculture and Rural Leaders (SARL) event in Boise. Part of the event was a tour on Friday, May 20. LIA Alumni engaged in hosting and presenting the tours included: Drew Eggers, Class 12; Michelle Gooding, Class 38; Jarom Jemmett, Class 39; and Jessica Anderson, Class 41. The alumni did a great job of telling the Idaho agriculture story.