Members Gather for 2026 Convention

Mar 9, 2026 | Events, Uncategorized

On March 5, 2026, Oregon Women for Agriculture members started to gather at the historic McMenamins Grand Lodge in Forest Grove for the annual convention, this year hosted by Yamhill County. Members who arrived early were seen enjoying the pool, while county treasurers and presidents each had their own meetings in the afternoon. That evening we enjoyed a meal together before Leanne Babcock of the Dauntless Veteran Foundation gave us an overview of their grant program. Finally, we enjoyed some lively discussion during Town Hall mainly concerning IP28.

The event took place in Forest Grove at the beautiful Grand Lodge.

Saturday, we met next door at the site of an old orphanage, now known as the Children’s Cottage. After a short business meeting we dove into a series of short presentations. We heard from Taylor Foerster from Oregon State University giving us some general social media tips plus an update on their Ag Communication program. Then Jennifer Redmond-Noble told the story of their multigenerational family farm, and the planning and tradeoffs required to keep the operation a viable size. Finally, our Nebraska guest speaker played a video Outoftheshaddowsdoc.com highlighting some of the mental health issues affecting farmers and ranchers. After a short break, Laura Schroeder of Schroeder Law Offices, PC gave us an overview of Oregon water law to wrap up the morning.

The afternoon saw us out on a bus tour. At our first stop, New York Times columnist, Nicholas Kristof, and his wife, Sheryl Wudunn, welcomed us to Kristof Farms outside of Yamhill and talked about their efforts to find a profitable crop for their farm and creating a value-added product. We had lunch while tasting their award-winning wine and cider. Meanwhile our bus driver was executing a 20-point turn attempting to turn the large bus in a small space! He questioned how we had been approved to drive to that location? However, he was soon mollified as our next tour consisted of driving through the picturesque ranch of our member, Nancy Thornton. The creek running through their ranch is the source of drinking water for the city of McMinnville. We also admired the beautiful cattle in the pastures and the view of the 400,000 trees they have planted. Our last stop was at the seed plant for Berger Seed International, where Becky Berger gave us a tour. Becky has built up an impressive operation which now includes a seed company, which Becky travels internationally for to market seed. Becky spoke passionately about what it takes to keep a family business together.

Leah Peterson “Clear Creek Ranch Mom” with Helle Ruddenklau convention chair.

It was then time to return to the Grand Lodge for our evening. During the social hour, we enjoyed a little farmer’s market. Thank you to Jen Skiles, Diann Washburn and Central Oregon Women for Agriculture for bringing items for us to look at and buy. After dinner the LEAVEN award was presented to Debbie Burns, followed by our keynote speaker, Leah Peterson from Nebraska who is known as Clear Creek Ranch Mom. Leah spoke of her personal story including some strong women through the generations. She is currently living with her family on the ranch she grew up on. She encouraged us all to share our story. Leah’s presentation summed up what seemed to be some themes that ran through the convention; what it means to be a woman in agriculture, the many roles we take on, and the strength needed to see our operations succeed.

Saturday morning, we moved to the Community Auditorium in Forest Grove. Before the official meeting started, Evelyn Tedrick of Oregon Agriculture In The Classroom gave an overview of this year’s Ag Literacy project and the fun Candy Land themed activity that goes with it. We then moved into the annual meeting, where we conducted the required business and also elected new officers for this year. 

As always it was a time to renew friendships and make new ones. Attending convention is an important reminder of the unique role we play within this industry and the common bonds we all share. On behalf of Yamhill County Women for Agriculture, I would like to thank everyone who attended.