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Nebraska beef … it’s what’s for inauguration dinnerNebraska beef … it’s what’s for inauguration dinner

Nebraska Notebook: “Returning to the Farm” workshop series gets into the nuts and bolts of planning a farm transition.

Curt Arens, Senior Editor

January 27, 2025

2 Min Read
24-ounce bone-in ribeye and 8-ounce center-cut petite filet mignon with creamed spinach and sauteed mushrooms
SERVING NEBRASKA: Nebraska beef from Greater Omaha Packing Co. was front and center at the inauguration luncheon Jan. 20 honoring the inauguration of President Donald Trump. Nebraska Sen. Deb Fischer and Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar were key to the inauguration ceremonies as ranking members of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies. Mark Gail/The Washington Post via Getty Images

Guests who gathered at the presidential inaugural luncheon in Statuary Hall in the U.S. Capitol about an hour and a half after the inauguration of President Donald Trump on Jan. 20 could look down at their plates and look forward to enjoying beef from Nebraska.

In her remarks before the luncheon, Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar reported that part of the menu for the luncheon, hosted by the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, included Greater Omaha Angus ribeye steak from Nebraska and an apple icebox terrine made from apples from Klobuchar’s home state.

On Greater Omaha Packing Co.’s Facebook page, it noted the origin of the entrée of the day, saying, “We are proud to share our premium Great Omaha Angus ribeye was served as the centerpiece of today’s inaugural luncheon.”

Klobuchar and Nebraska Sen. Deb Fischer were front and center for much of the inauguration day festivities, including the swearing-in, because both served as ranking members on the JCCIC.

Return to the farm

A workshop series for families in the transition process of bringing members back to the farm or ranch, the two-day “Returning to the Farm” meeting will run March 8-9 at the University of Nebraska Extension office for Buffalo County in Kearney.

The series is set to assist families and ag operations in developing financial plans and successful working arrangements to meet their unique needs. The workshops will guide families in developing estate and transition plans, setting personal and professional goals, and improving communication processes between family members.

Related:Talking Beef Checkoff: Q&A with CBB chair

Nebraska Extension educator Jessica Groskopf says that organizers hope to have “two or three generations come to this together and take that time, as a family, to sit down, learn together and start these important processes.”

The workshop fee is $75 per person before March 1 and $85 after that. Registration includes dinner on March 8 and lunch on March 9. It also includes two follow-up workshops to be held virtually. Complete the registration by visiting cap.unl.edu/rtf25.

About the Author

Curt Arens

Senior Editor, Nebraska Farmer

Curt Arens began writing about Nebraska’s farm families when he was in high school. Before joining Farm Progress first as a field editor in 2010, and then as editor of Nebraska Farmer in 2021, he had worked as a freelance farm writer for 27 years for newspapers and farm magazines, including Nebraska Farmer. His real full-time career during this period was farming his family’s fourth-generation land near Crofton, Neb. where his family raised corn, soybeans, wheat, oats, alfalfa, cattle, hogs and Christmas trees.

Curt and his wife Donna have four children, Lauren, Taylor, Zachary and Benjamin. They are active in their church and St. Rose School in Crofton, where Donna teaches. The family now rents out their crop ground to a neighbor, but still lives on the same farm first operated by Curt's great-grandparents, and they still run a few cows and other assorted 4-H and FFA critters.

Previously, the 1986 University of Nebraska animal science graduate wrote a weekly rural life column, developed a farm radio program and wrote books about farm life. He received media honors from the Nebraska Forest Service, Center for Rural Affairs, Nebraska Association of County Extension Boards and Nebraska Association of Natural Resources Districts.

He wrote about the spiritual side of farming in his 2008 book, “Down to Earth: Celebrating a Blessed Life on the Land,” garnering a Catholic Press Association award.

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