WestGen Announces The Winners Of The 2016 Education Awards - Cowsmo

WestGen Announces The Winners Of The 2016 Education Awards

WestGen is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2016 WestGen Education Awards. Each of these selected students will receive $2000 to assist them with their post-secondary agriculture studies. The selection committee was extremely pleased with the quality of applicants this year, and encourages those not selected to apply again next year. Supporting youth and the development of the Western Canadian cattle industry are mandates of the WestGen Endowment Fund, and we look forward to watching these students become successful in each of their chosen career paths. Michael Borst, of Elm Creek Manitoba is a 4th year student in the Animal Systems Degree program at the University of Manitoba , focusing on Animal Nutrition studies. Growing up on a second generation innovative dairy taught Michael a lot about cows, crops, equipment, and progressive dairying. Michael is interested in data tracking how cows rank in production and genetically. Michael hopes to own his own dairy and use everything he has learned in genetics, nutrition, and innovative equipment to continue in the progressive dairy life. Sydney Fox of Westwold, BC is in her second year at Lakeland College, completing her Animal Science Technology Diploma. After graduation, Sydney will be returning home to help her parents run the family farm. She plans to apply her education by improving herd genetics and cow care. Sydney would like to continue her education by taking short dairy courses in British Columbia and in other countries. With an interest in cow welfare, she would like to contribute to the dairy industry in that regard. In the future, Sydney wants to be the proud owner of her family dairy farm that produces wholesome milk with healthy, happy cows. Michael Haeni of Didsbury, Alberta is attending Lakeland College in his second year for an Agricultural Business Degree. Born into the Jersey family, Michael grew up on the Lone Pine family farm, milking approximately 90 purebred Jerseys. His love for the smaller brown cow began at a very young age when he started showing and milking alongside his family. Michael continues to be very involved with the farm, and currently manages its marketing, advertising, and social media. He hopes to one day be breeding some of the finest Jersey cows in Canada. Shelby Devet of Ponoka, Alberta is in her third year of Bachelor of Science – Agribusiness at University of Saskatchewan. She was born and raised on a dairy farm just West of Ponoka, Alberta. Growing up, you could often find her in the barn working with some of her favourite cows. Very quickly, Shelby took an interest in dairy genetics and learned an immense amount from her mom, their semen sales representatives, and many other people involved in the industry. Following the completion of her degree in 2018, Shelby hopes to acquire a job in either dairy feed nutrition or dairy genetics, which will still give her enough time to travel to shows and communicate with many individuals within the industry. WestGen is extremely proud of all the winners of this award, and we look forward to seeing their growth and development in the future. Qualifying students are encouraged to apply for the 2017 awards this fall.

WestGen has been in business for 72 years and is Western Canada’s Leader in Genetics and Reproduction. Their new building serves as a home for both their members, and their growing subsidiary companies: Cryogen Liquid Nitrogen Solutions and (after the completion of Phase 2) Boviteq West. To learn more visit www.westgen.com or call us at 604.426.1944.

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