Vanessa Wright: Farm Kid to Fourth Generation

When people in my generation explain their background in or introduction to agriculture, it often starts with 4-H and FFA. My participation in these organizations was sporadic at best, because my time was typically won over by sports. While I had summers that I showed pigs, that time in my life was primarily marked by weekend tournaments, summer leagues, and travel teams.

Another common connection one has to agriculture is coming from a family farm. I had that going for me as well, but for the entirety of my childhood, my grandparents lived on the farm while my family lived a town away in a neighborhood. Much of my childhood was spent at the farm – it was one of my favorite places to be – but it was based more in going to play and have fun than it was in responsibility and work.

By the time I was an upperclassman in high school, I felt caught in the middle of these two worlds – an athlete who spent more time in “town,” or an ag kid who spent more time in the “country.”

Finding my agricultural career path in college

This feeling further solidified when I joined the College of ACES (Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences) at the University of Illinois. My peers seemed so knowledgeable and experienced…they seemed established in their agricultural upbringings. I didn’t feel like a “farm kid” – I felt like a kid who went to the farm. This isn’t to say I wasn’t recruited to help with pig chores, pick up rocks, mow, and other various tasks – my family wasn’t going to let me off that easy.

But maybe this feeling was why I didn’t initially see myself working in production agriculture. I never questioned that I wanted to work within the agriculture industry, I just wasn’t sure exactly what I wanted to do. Luckily, I found myself in a role at Illinois Farm Bureau, and during my time there, I got to work with a lot of people who came from family farms and heard their stories about what that meant to them. It got me thinking about my family’s farm.

The pull back to the family farm

At this point, my husband and I were living two hours away from where we grew up, and where both of our families lived. After being away from home for several years, we both started to feel the tug to move back. We thought about what we wanted our life to look like long-term, and what might need to happen to put that plan in motion. After many long, difficult, and exciting conversations we decided to move home. While a culmination of factors influenced our decision, family and the farm were at the center of it.

I never felt pressured to be (or not be) a part of the family business in any way. My parents supported my interests on and off the farm, so long as I saw any commitment I made through. There were times I wished there was more of an expectation to be involved, if for no other reason to make the decision easier. But when coming back to the farm was a thought I couldn’t shake, I knew it was truly because it was what I wanted, and not because of some obligation I felt – something I’m incredibly grateful for.

Reflecting back on the decision to come home

We’ve been back home now for over two years, living just down the road from my parents, who now live on the farm. While we both have jobs off-the-farm (Logan as a firefighter/paramedic and me as a crop insurance agent), we are still working to determine our roles and involvement on the farm. It changes day-by-day, if not hour-by-hour (which I’m sure dad just loves).

For whatever reason, I used to feel like I had to commit to one way or type of life. While “farm life” is my favorite way to live, I’ve finally realized it doesn’t have to be my only identifier. And while there are moments that continuing the family farm legacy is daunting, I also know I don’t have to do it alone – I have a great community of friends and family I know I can lean on.

Coming back to farm with my family and be the next generation was both a very hard and a very easy decision. Difficult because we changed the trajectory of our lives, and working with family isn’t always sunshine and daisies. Easy because we love the farm life, we love our families, and having the two integrated is a very special dynamic that not many people get to experience. If I had to do it over again, I’d make the exact same decision.