Farm Progress

2017 Friends of Expo honorees include Diane Morgenthaler, David Jeans, Rick Farris and Suzanne Lois.

December 27, 2017

2 Min Read
HONOREES: 2017 Friend of Expo honorees are (from left) David Jeans, Rick Farris and Diane Morgenthaler; not pictured is Suzanne Lois. They were recognized Dec. 11 for their continued efforts at World Dairy Expo.

World Dairy Expo’s annual Friends of Expo party was held Dec. 11, recognizing the efforts and contributions of WDE’s nearly 500 volunteers. The evening was highlighted with the presentation of the 2017 Friend of Expo Award to longtime Expo supporters Diane Morgenthaler, Dr. David Jeans, Rick Farris and Suzanne Lois for their dedication to the continued success of World Dairy Expo.  

Working at the Greater Madison Convention and Visitors Bureau, Diane Morgenthaler spends September and October preparing for World Dairy Expo and the people it brings to Madison, Wis. She creates promotional items, including highway billboards, signs at the Dane County Regional Airport and other things that can be seen around Madison. She also provides materials to WDE exhibitors and international visitors, helping them discover everything Madison has to offer. With Morgenthaler’s insider information, Expo attendees can explore the city and the Alliant Energy Center with ease.

David Jeans has been the World Dairy Expo ethics coordinator for seven years. During the week of Expo, he can be found overseeing student workers and veterinary staff taking milk samples from champions, working with the ultrasound coordinator and crew, walking the grounds monitoring cattle and exhibitors, and assisting staff as ethics information and reports are generated. With Jeans’ oversight, Expo is able to maintain high ethical standards for its world-class dairy cattle show.

The first face Expo exhibitors and attendees are likely to see is that of Rick Farris. He has been a key member of the team responsible for the smooth ingress and egress of more than 2,000 head of cattle and their exhibitors and 850 trade show companies for more than a decade. During show hours, the former Dane County detective can be found working at the main entrance gate on Rimrock Road and overseeing the unloading and parking of school buses filled with fourth-grade students and FFA members.

When Suzanne Lois is not working in the Genex Dairy Group’s trade show booth, she is busy volunteering in the dairy cattle show. Lois’ Expo week begins on the Friday before WDE, when she assists with animal health check-in, followed by three days of locating and checking in Milking Shorthorn cattle around the grounds for the show. She then moves to the show ring to assist during the International Milking Shorthorn Show before taking over the microphone on Thursday night to make barn calls for the Youth Showmanship Contest.

Serving as the meeting place of the global dairy industry, World Dairy Expo brings together the latest in dairy innovation and the best cattle in North America. Crowds of nearly 70,000 people, from 100 countries, will return to Madison for the 52nd annual event Oct. 2-6, when the world’s largest dairy-focused trade show, dairy and forage seminars, a world-class dairy cattle show and more will be on display.

Source: World Dairy Expo

Subscribe to receive top agriculture news
Be informed daily with these free e-newsletters

You May Also Like