June 19, 2012
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more information contact:
Mike Deering, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, 202-879-9117 or mdeering@beef.org; or
Carrie Heitman, American Angus Association communications coordinator, 816-383-5100 or cheitman@angus.org.
Information and photos for this release provided by NCBA; click here for photos.
Angus Representatives Attend Elite Beef Industry Conference
John Widdowson and Chris Stallo participated in the 2012 Young Cattlemen’s Conference.
The American Angus Association® and the Angus Foundation were proud to sponsor two individuals during the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) 33rd Young Cattlemen’s Conference (YCC). John Widdowson, an Angus rancher from Lodgepole, Neb., represented the Angus Foundation, and representing the Association was Chris Stallo, assistant director of information systems in Saint Joseph, Mo.
More than 50 young cattlemen and women joined together May 31 through June 7 to participate in YCC. The program is a comprehensive, nationwide tour of beef industry sectors, created to enhance leadership skills in your beef industry professionals.
“YCC is a prestigious and competitive program designed to foster the future leadership of our industry,” said Forrest Roberts, NCBA chief executive officer. “The participants selected to attend YCC were chosen because of their exceptional contributions to the beef industry and their potential to be a strong voice in our future development. I look forward to seeing them take an increased leadership role within NCBA and the beef industry.”
John Widdowson
Widdowson was born and raised in south central Nebraska on a five-generation family farm and ranch. While majoring in animal science at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Widdowson met his wife-to-be Laurie. Soon after graduation, they started their registered Angus operation, Sandpoint Cattle Co., with only ten cows. Today, it currently runs around 1,300 registered cows on 12,000 acres and holds two annual productions sales on the ranch.
Widdowson also enjoys working with his two sons, Maverick, 13, and Maguire, 10, on a daily basis within their operations. The Widdowson family has been blessed and challenged in many areas of their life, including the battle they faced in losing a son, Mullen, to brain cancer in September 2008. Widdowson said: “The amount of learning experiences, both blessings and hardships, our family faced and endured in this journey is second to none.”
He says his hobbies are enjoying and appreciating the little things in life and cherishing every moment with family and friends. Another family favorite is cheering on the Nebraska Cornhuskers on game days.
“This was a tremendous opportunity to meet other producers and learn valuable tools to take back home to our operations,” Widdowson said. “It’s great to learn how we as producers can have an impact on policy issues as well.”
Chris Stallo
Stallo has worked for the American Angus Association in Saint Joseph, Mo., for 12 years. He grew up on a small cow/calf operation in north central Missouri, and his father and brothers continue to manage the farm today. Stallo enjoys working for the members of the Association to provide quicker, more efficient ways to process their work – allowing them to spend less time in front of the computer and more time in the field.
Stallo and his wife Suzanne reside in Platte City, Mo., with their three sons. His hobbies include coaching youth sports and hunting. He graduated from DeVry University with a degree in computer information systems in 1994.
“This was a tremendous opportunity to meet other producers and learn valuable tools to take back home to our operations,” Stallo said. “It’s great to learn how we as producers can have an impact on policy issues as well.”
About YCC
The eight-day tour began at NCBA headquarters in Denver, Colo., where participants were given an organizational overview of NCBA and the Beef Checkoff Program. While in Denver, the group also heard from representatives of CattleFax and the U.S. Meat Export Federation. They toured a Safeway retail store and learned about Rancher’s Reserve brand beef marketing efforts. The group spent a day in Greeley, Colo., visiting JBS Five Rivers feed yards and processing facilities.
Participants then traveled to the Chicago Board of Trade and OSI, Inc., one of the nation’s premier beef patty manufacturers. From there, the next stop was the nation’s Capitol, where participants met with their respective congressmen and senators and many regulatory agencies that make decisions affecting agriculture.
For more information on YCC, visit www.beefusa.org.
The American Angus Association is the nation’s largest beef organization, serving more than 30,000 members across the United States and Canada. It provides programs and services to farmers, ranchers and others who rely on the power of Angus to produce quality genetics for the beef industry and quality beef for consumers.
For more information about Angus cattle and the American Angus Association’s programs and services, visit www.angus.org.
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