One of Mary Lewandowski’s goals is to advocate for agriculture by educating the public about the importance of the industry. The Wittenberg-Birnamwood FFA member from Bevent, Wis., began her advocacy with young consumers.
During the summer of 2021 before her senior year and as part of her supervised agricultural experience (SAE), Lewandowski wrote a children’s book called “The Life of a Wisconsin Dairy Farm Girl” chronicling her experience growing up on a farm. She and her older brother, Alex, are the fifth generation on the family farm, Lakeland Dairy, where the Lewandowski family raises Holstein cattle, chickens, several mischievous cats, and two collie dogs named Buffy and Buddy.
“Before writing the book, I reached out to local elementary schools to see if there was a need for agriculture to be taught in Wisconsin classrooms,” Lewandowski says. “I wanted my SAE to impact students, preserve the history of the Wisconsin dairy industry and honor the legacy of my ancestors who worked hard on our dairy farm.”
Lewandowski printed 200 copies of her book, thanks to a grant from the Wittenberg-Birnamwood FFA Alumni and Supporters Chapter. She shared the book with elementary students at different schools, then later added a glossary and printed an additional 50 copies with funding from the Shawano County Farm Bureau.
“I created a 30-minute presentation that included reading my story, looking at samples of cow feed and different eggs my chickens laid. We also played a game called Name That Farm Tune, where I played my trumpet for the children to guess songs,” she says. “At the end, I gave them a worksheet with six fill-in-the-blank questions and measured the knowledge they retained. I also brought them little goodies to remember my presentation such as pens, pencils, chapsticks and drawstring bags donated by various Wisconsin agriculture organizations.”
Throughout her senior year, Lewandowski did 40 presentations in nine schools and spoke with 700 elementary students.
“After hearing my story, a lot of kids said they want to be in FFA someday or they want to have a farm of their own,” she says. “It has been cool to see children make the connection in the lunchroom that their milk or butter on their bread comes from a dairy farm.”
Lewandowski plans to study dairy science and agribusiness at Northcentral Technical College in Wausau, Wis., for two years and then transfer to the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. In the future, she hopes to lead her family’s dairy farm and continue being an advocate for agriculture.
“Presenting my story made me realize I have a passion for agricultural advocacy,” she says. “This project was definitely the highlight of my senior year.”
