Wyoming Beef Advoate named to 2015 National Beef Ambassador Team

Rachel Purdy had the opportunity of a lifetime and took that chance to create a new chapter in her advocating career for the beef industry. Rachel spent time in local grocery stores like the Cheyenne Sam’s Club to educate and answer questions for consumers. According to the Wyoming Livestock Roundup (WyLR), Rachel states the she is, “…excited to represent the Cowboy State as a member of the national team, there’s still work to be done at home, too.” She has worked hard to educate consumers about various aspects of the livestock industry including the shock of an electric fence. The purpose of the video was to show that an electric fence would not hurt you or a large animal, but instead, just give a warning not to go farther. She jokes that her Dad enjoyed the making of the video a little too much as Rachel touched the fence. While to some of us, we would think she is crazy, but in reality it turned out to be a great way to reach out to people who are disconnected to agriculture.

sams demo — Consumer education is key to the Wyoming Beef Ambassadors as they reached out to consumers at the Cheyenne Sam’s Club.

Currently, Rachel is serving as the Secretary for the University of Wyoming Collegiate Cattle Association, is a Wyoming Stock Growers Association Youth Joint Member and is majoring in Agricultural Business at the University of Wyoming. We are proud that Rachel is representing our state and the ranchers who don’t have the time to advocate like Rachel. During her time as a Wyoming Beef Ambassador she states again in the WyLR that, “What really inspired me about this program is I’ve had producers come up to me at consumer demos and say, ‘Thank you – I don’t have time to do this’. I have to make sure I’m at home to feed in the morning…”

The competition for the National Beef Ambassador team was a process that Rachel has prepared for since she was fifteen. Rachel shares her experience with Real Ranchers and looks forward to the upcoming year – Congratulations, Rachel!

“The last weekend in September the National Beef Ambassador competition was held in Denver, Colorado. In case you have not heard of the beef ambassador program, it is a program that provides the opportunity for youth to share their beef story, and promote beef. It is funded in part by the Beef Checkoff and managed by the American National CattleWomen, Inc, I was honored to represent the state of Wyoming at this level. There were 20 senior contestants in total and 10 junior contestants from around the country.”
“This competition consists of four areas; consumer promotion, education and outreach strategy, media interview technique, and issues response. The lucky five individuals that receive the highest scores have the opportunity to travel around the country and promote beef. At the awards banquet, I was ecstatic when my name was called as a member of the 2015 National Beef Ambassador team. I will be working alongside Will Pohlman (Arkansas), Alicia Smith (Texas), Kalyn McKibben (Oklahoma), and Demi Snider (Ohio) were also chosen to represent the beef industry in the coming year. I feel very blessed to have received this opportunity, and am looking forward to what this year will bring!”