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Foothills cowgirl impresses with speech

A Turner Valley woman is on her way to making a difference when it comes to agriculture in Alberta. Twenty-two-year-old Emily Ritchie expressed her views at the Royal Winter Fair in Toronto Nov.
Emily Ritchie on her family’ s ranch west of Turner Valley on Nov. 19. Ritchie was a finalist in a national speech competition related to the agriculture industry.
Emily Ritchie on her family’ s ranch west of Turner Valley on Nov. 19. Ritchie was a finalist in a national speech competition related to the agriculture industry.

A Turner Valley woman is on her way to making a difference when it comes to agriculture in Alberta.

Twenty-two-year-old Emily Ritchie expressed her views at the Royal Winter Fair in Toronto Nov. 5, concerning the successes and struggles faced by men and women in the agriculture industry.

She was representing Alberta after winning the inaugural Young Speakers for Agriculture Contest at this year’s Calgary Stampede.

Ritchie learned about the contest after a friend shared a link about it on Facebook.

“I spoke on what the next generation of farmers and ranchers brings to the table in agriculture,” she said. “I spoke about the enthusiasm and the passion that I see in young producers right now - just seeing the different challenges we are up against.”

Ritchie said these challenges include increasing land prices, ever-changing machinery and pressure from consumers to adhere to demands and what they believe is good practices in agriculture - although it may not necessarily be the case. She also spoke about the optimistic side of the agriculture industry.

“A positive is we have access to so many new technologies,” she said. “We are up against a lot of changes, but we have new technology to help us get through these problems.”

Ritchie’s speech was selected as the winner among more than 20 competitors in the senior division (ages 16 to 24) at the provincial level. The competition took placed at the BMO Centre during the Calgary Stampede last July.

“The way I try to prepare my speeches is I speak as candidly as possible,” she said. “It’s more like a conversation with the audience than delivering a speech.”

Ritchie won $1,000 in Calgary and qualified to compete at the national level at the Royal Winter Fair.

“It was little bit harder,” she said of the fair. “There were a few people who qualified through 4-H to be there as well. There were people who enjoyed public speaking as one of their favourite past-times. There was quite a cross section of people.”

Ritchie admits she was pretty nervous looking at the level of competition around her in Toronto.

“I’m positive it was made up of the best young speakers in Canada,” she said. “There were fantastic people in the top six. The judges had to collaborate for half an hour.”

While Ritchie didn’t win the contest, she was selected among the top six and awarded $150.

“I gained a lot of respect for other people who are interested in agriculture,” she said. “It was great to meet a lot of people interested in the same thing as I am. I gained really great experience speaking on different levels and being tested in different ways, having to introduce and thank other speakers on your toes.”

Ritchie’s entire life has revolved around agriculture, having grown up on a ranch west of Turner Valley.

“I’ve been involved in the beef industry since before I could remember,” she said. “I see the way consumers interact with producers and the different demands that are placed on agriculture. I got tired of the world biting the hand that feeds it. I wanted to be part of the change. I’m passionate about agriculture.”

The Oilfields High School graduate was involved in the day-to-day operations of her family ranch ranging from assisting with calving to putting cattle out to pasture.

She was also a member of the Millarville Saddle Sores 4-H group as a youth, where speeches were a huge component of the program with an expectation that members compete in a public speaking or communications activity each year.

In addition to excelling at public speaking, Ritchie also held almost every executive position in the 4-H club and was involved in almost every committee.

She earned a diploma in agriculture technology, majoring in animal science at Lethbridge College, and has since worked for a cow/calf risk management and marketing company. She currently works for the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association as the youth leadership co-ordinator in Calgary.

Where Ritchie goes from here, she’s not quite sure.

“I had a lot of people in post-secondary ask what I want to do in agriculture,” she said. “I’m not really sure but I want to make a difference. I want to get that next generation of the beef industry excited and I’m excited to see where that goes from there.”

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