Dean and Paula Swenson have been named Agriculturalists of the Year by the NDSU Saddle and Sirloin Club.
Dean and Paula Swenson are set to be honored by the NDSU Saddle and Sirloin Club as Agriculturalists of the Year at the Little International Showmanship contest.
The 97th Little I is scheduled to be held Feb. 10-11. The Swensons will be honored at the Agriculturist of the Year banquet Friday, Feb. 10, at the Sanctuary Events Center in Fargo.
The Swensons graduated from NDSU in 1973, where they were both active in the Saddle and Sirloin club, as well as many other campus organizations. They married after graduation and later bought a farm in Walcott, North Dakota, where they still live.
The couple started The Sandburs 4-H club and have worked with the local livestock judging teams. They were instrumental in developing the meat goat shows at the Red River Valley Fair and North Dakota State Fair. Dean also worked on the Cass County Livestock Achievement Day Committee and was a member of the Red River Valley Fair board. They are both active in the North Dakota Lamb and Wool Producers Association, and they are members of the American Sheep Industry Animal Health Committee and American Farm Bureau Federation.
The Swensons have three sons and eight grandchildren. They continue to farm with their oldest son and his family.
“The theme for the 97th Little I is ‘Leaving a Legacy,’ and Dean and Paula are tremendous examples of this, as well as exceptional role models for both the members of the Saddle and Sirloin club and agriculturists across the state,” said Lydia Lyons, 97th Little I publicity chair.
Tickets for the Agriculturist of the Year banquet are $20. To purchase banquet tickets, contact Tyler Goplen at tyler.goplen@ndsu.edu or 507-829-1992.
The Little I livestock showmanship contest is set to begin Saturday, Feb. 11, at 8 a.m. at Shepperd Arena with Saddle and Sirloin club members and other students showing beef, dairy, swine, sheep and goats. The showmanship finals are scheduled to begin at 5 p.m.
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