Colin Wussow, Cecil, Wis., has been named the 66th winner of the National Jersey Youth Achievement Contest. He and nine other juniors will be recognized for their achievements in the contest at the Youth Awards Ceremony on Sunday, November 7, 2021, during All American festivities in Louisville, Ky.
The contest recognizes Jersey youth from across the country for their leadership, activities and participation in Jersey functions, as well as their success in breeding and managing their own Jersey cattle.
More information about this year’s award winners is available in the September 2021 issue of the Jersey Journal.
First Colin Wussow, Cecil, Wis.
Senior, University of Wisconsin-River Falls
Agricultural Business
Colin grew up on Milk-n-More Farms and Harvesting LLC, owned and operated by his family in Cecil. He has been involved in Jersey youth activities for 15 years and now owns 47 Jerseys and six Holsteins. Wussow is a recipient of the V.L. Peterson Scholarship and participated in Jersey Youth Academy. He topped the 2009 National Jersey Youth Production Contest and placed second in 2019 Pot O’Gold Production Contest. He was a finalist for the National FFA Dairy Entrepreneurship Proficiency award in 2019 and received his National FFA Degree in 2020. He is a member of the University of Wisconsin-River Falls Dairy Club, the Agriculture Business and Marketing Society, Alpha Gamma Rho-Alpha Psi fraternity and the university’s dairy judging team. He plans to return to the family farm upon graduation.
Second Josh Seals, Tillamook, Ore. Sophomore, Oregon State University/Eastern Oregon University (EOU)
Agriculture Science
Josh grew up on Sunny Ridge Dairy and has been participating in Jersey youth activities for 14 years. His Registered Jersey herd is 24 cows and 24 heifers. Seals received the 2020 AJCA Directors’ Scholarship, attended Jersey Youth Academy, and placed in both the Pot O’Gold and National Jersey Youth Production Contests. He received his American FFA Degree in 2020. He belongs to the ag club, trap shooting club, and national society of leadership at Eastern Oregon University and Sandlake Grange. Seals plans to advance the genetics of the herd and eventually purchase his own farm.
Third
Lydia Chittenden, Schodack Landing, N.Y. Sophomore, Cornell University
Animal Science
Lydia manages Dutch Hollow Farm LLC with her extended family. She has been involved in Jersey youth activities for 19 years and owns 33 heifers and 38 cows. She was a member of Class VI of Jersey Youth Academy and has received both the Jack C. Nisbet Memorial Scholarship and the William A. Russell Memorial Scholarship. Lydia was active in multiple 4-H groups and a member of the SUNY-Cobleskill Dairy Cattle Club before she transferred to Cornell University this fall. Chittenden also played with the SUNY-Cobleskill women’s basketball team.
Fourth Gracie Krahn, Albany, Ore.
Sophomore, Linn-Benton Community College
Animal Science and Agricultural Communications
Gracie grew up on the family farm—Royal Riverside Farm. The processes their own milk on-farm and sells dairy products direct to consumers. Krahn, the 2019 National Jersey Queen, has been involved in Jersey youth activities for 15 years and currently owns 16 heifers and 22 cows. She was a member of Class VII of Jersey Youth Academy and is a recipient of the Bob Toole Youth Award. She was also active with 4-H and FFA. She plans to transfer to Oklahoma State University in 2022 and pursue a career in agriculture and policy.
Fifth Kylie Lehr, Canastota, N.Y. May 2021 Graduate, Cornell University Kylie operates Ky-Hi Jerseys with her family. Her herd numbers 30 heifers and 22 cows. She has participated in Jersey youth activities for 17 years. She placed seventh in the 2019 National Jersey Youth Production Contest, attended Jersey Youth Academy, and received the Bob Toole Youth Award. Lehr was also heavily involved in 4-H. At Cornell, she was a member of the dairy science club and the dairy fellows program and served as a peer advisor for the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
After college graduation, Lehr hopes to continue to be involved in the dairy industry.
Sixth Kathryn Bosley, Malone, N.Y. Graduate School, University of Minnesota
Kathryn and her family operate Tierney Farm Jerseys. She has been involved with Jersey cattle from a young age, with special skills in record-keeping, management, and genetics. She owns 21 heifers and 48 cows and has been involved with Jersey youth activities for 15 years. She attended Jersey Youth Academy and received both the Lineweaver Scholarship and the V.L. Peterson Scholarship. In college, Bosley was a member of the Gamma Delta chapter of Sigma Alpha, the SUNY Cobleskill Dairy Cattle Club, and the American British White Park Association. She is well-known in social media circles for her “Cow Nerd” platform, where she shares agricultural facts to educate the general public.
Seventh Mary Holtz, Maquoketa, Iowa Senior, Iowa State University
Animal Science
Holtz owns and operates Holt-View farms with her parents, Jeff and Lisa Holtz, and has been raising and showing Jerseys her entire life. She has participated in Jersey youth activities for 10 years and currently owns 65 heifers and 70 cows. She also owns 20 Ayrshires and six Brown Swiss. She placed second in the 2020 National Jersey Youth Production Contest, was a member of Class VI of Jersey Youth Academy, and received the Cedarcrest Farms Scholarship. Holtz was involved in 4-H and FFA and recently served on the planning committee for the AJCA-NAJ Annual Meeting, hosted by Iowa in 2021. Holtz was crowned as the 2019-2022 Iowa Ayrshire Princess and the 2018-2019 Iowa Jersey Princess. Mary is a member of the Iowa State University Dairy Science Club. She plans to become a veterinarian.
Eighth
Lane Bollenbacher, Argos, Ind. Junior, Purdue University
Animal Science
Bollenbacher manages the family farm, Bolle-Acres, with his family and has participated in Jersey youth activities for 12 years. His herd currently numbers 179 cows and 83 heifers. Seven members of the milking string have earned Hall of Fame recognition from the AJCA. Bollenbacher was involved in 4-H and FFA. He placed second in the National 4-H Dairy Judging Contest at World Dairy Expo in 2019 and is a two-time winner of the Indiana FFA State Dairy Entrepreneurship Proficiency. In addition, he placed second in senior showmanship at The All American Junior Jersey Show the past two years.
Ninth Hannah Diehl, McVeytown, Pa.
Senior, Pennsylvania State University
Animal Science, with minors in Agribusiness Management and Agronomy
Hannah and her family operate Musser Run Jerseys. She is responsible for monitoring herd health. Among her favorite youth activities was showing. Diehl was a member of Class VI of Jersey Youth Academy and received the Anne E. Perchard Award. She was the 2020 Jersey Marketing Service Fred Stout Experience winner and completed a short internship with the AJCA communications department as well. She was involved in 4-H and is now an active member of the Penn State Dairy Science Club and the Collegiate Cattle Women’s Club. She also is a member of the dairy judging and reproductive research teams. After college, Diehl hopes to manage a herd and market local dairy products in a store of her own.
Tenth Meghan Hettinga, Orange City, Iowa Senior, South Dakota State University
Dairy Production
Hettinga has been involved in Jersey youth projects for 12 years and grew up helping her parents, Jason and Mary, on the family farm, Hettinga Dairy. As she built her own herd, she became more involved in selecting genetics and developing marketing plans for her animals. She now owns five cows and five heifers. She was the Iowa Jersey Princess in 2019 and 2020 and currently serves as the Iowa State Dairy Princess. She attended Jersey Youth Academy and received the Paul Jackson Memorial Scholarship. She was involved in 4-H and FFA throughout high school. She is a member of the South Dakota State University ambassador team and a discus thrower on the track and field team.
More Information
The Jersey youth programs have been a core part of Jersey youth development since 1958. Nominations for the National Jersey Youth Achievement Contest are made by state Jersey organizations, which can nominate up to two individuals each year. The competition is open to members of the AJCA who are between the ages of 16 and 20 on January 1 of the contest year or placed among the top 10 in the previous year’s contest.