Many are taking matters into their own hands when it comes to helping agriculture across the state of Wisconsin. From FFA chapters selling yard signs in support of dairy farmers to a Rural Mutual Insurance agent buying milk for families in need, there are silver linings that have popped up all over America’s Dairyland as COVID-19 devastates agriculture.
Jessica Gruenenfelder is a dairy farmer in Blanchardville and she took to social media to encourage in-store sales at the cooperative her dairy sends milk to. In a Facebook post, she says “I am sure you are aware all that is facing the dairy industry. We ship our milk to Zimmerman’s in Wiota and they are making cheese on the weekends trying to meet the demand. They are doing everything in their power to take care of their patrons and keep farms like ours going. Many in our area ship there. If you want to support the farmers in our area please call Zimmerman Cheese.”
Jessica’s post received a “crazy response from family and friends and people in the community.” Things were going good, but little did she know that they were about to get even better. As Jessica explains, the VP of Intercon Construction in Waunakee called her saying he wanted to help out dairy farmers. She obliged and got her pen and paper out, ready to jot down his cheese order. What happened next blew Gruenenfelder away. The Intercon VP said that the company wanted to make a $10,000 donation so Zimmerman’s could make cheese and then donate that cheese to Second Harvest Food Bank in Madison.
“I kinda took a breath and my eyes got really big,” Gruenenfelder explains. Many of Jessica’s family members have worked at Intercon over the years but she has never met the man she was speaking to on the phone in-person, making this story all the more amazing. It is certainly an act of kindness that will not be forgotten anytime soon. Josh Scramlin recently caught up with Jessica on the Mid-West Farm Report and you can hear their full conversation by clicking the play button below:
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