GDYF Training Day held on June 5th

On Saturday, the Junior Board met for their annual leadership and training day. The seven officers spent the day learning about the industry, training, brainstorming ideas, and team building to improve involvement with the foundation.

The junior board began their day at Rock House Creamery in Newborn, Georgia. With the guidance of Robin Schick, they participated in making cheese, enjoyed a demonstration on making a charcuterie board, and toured the cheese facility. They were excited to sample Coffee, Bird Dog Betsy, Chocolate, and Vanilla Ice cream along with Rock House Chocolate Milk as well. A morning of yumminess!

The Kelly family are the owners of Rock House Creamery. They purchased the Johnston Family Farm dairy operation, a family owned and operated dairy since 1940. The farm milks to produce fresh whole milk, low-fat milk, skim milk, chocolate milk, buttermilk, cream, and half-and-half. The Kelly's dream was to expand that line offering many varieties of ice cream and cheeses at their family-run market. Farmview Market is located at 2610 Eatonton Road, Madison, GA where food is made, grown, and raised locally.

After our fun and educational morning, we spent several hours planning and brainstorming activities to engage junior members in the coming months. Our goals are to increase membership; promote the industry; thank our farmers, sponsors, and advisors that support us; and increase our social interaction so that we become more visible to a wide audience.

It will be exciting to see these ideas promoted over the coming months!

We concluded the afternoon with Carol Williams, President of Georgia Dairy Youth Foundation, giving a tour of W Dairy in Madison, GA. The Williams family milks 1,700 to 1,800 highly productive cows three times daily. This herd of crossbred cows has an impressive rolling herd average for milk production at more than 28,000 pounds of milk per year. They farm 3,657 acres. The Junior Board was fascinated by their operation.

Overall, the Board enjoyed their leadership experience and are ready to put their plans into action. Georgia's dairy youth can look forward to having more ways to get involved with dairy activities, including a costume class, monthly social media themes, raffles, and much more!