Terri Young

Hi y’all, my name is Terri Young and I’d like to share a short bio about myself and the Lampasas County Young Farmers.

I’m married to a wonderful man Bill Young, he is in Iraq again for his sixth tour. We have eight children, 5 of who we have raised together; our first grandbaby is due in August and the second due in September. We moved to the Lampasas area 12 years ago from Iowa Park, TX. 

I was a trauma nurse then a psychological nurse in Wichita Falls for 25 years when I had to retire due to a broke back. When we moved to Lampasas I stayed at home for a few years and now I substitute teach plus run our small horse ranch.

I have always loved animals and started riding horses when I was 10, they won my heart and have kept it since. We have 15 horses, 4 dogs, and 20 barn cats; we sold our herd of show goats when our last child graduated in 2009. Most of our horses are rescue horses from the area. We take them in, get them healthy and happy then tend to keep them (something my husband is not happy about) because I just can’t part with them. As Bill puts it we have pasture pets everywhere. I can’t stand to see any animal suffer, so we give them a peaceful and safe place to live their lives out.

When we moved to Lampasas our kids joined FFA and we bought our first show goats. In the years that followed the kids showed breeding goats for the most part, but have showed chickens and rabbits and always came back to goats. After the Young Farmers started a chapter here our son and daughter showed in the Ag. Mechanics Show we started in 2003.

Lampasas County Young Farmers was started here in 2002, and I was elected secretary. In the years that followed I have held office as President, Vice President, or Secretary every year since. I’m currently the Area VII President, Area VII State Vice President, and chapter Vice President so Young Farmers has become a big part of my life. In 2003 we started an Ag. Mechanics show that runs concurrently with the County stock show, and in 2004 we started a scholarship program. We continue to grow each year and have wonderful Ag. Teachers and parents that work hard to keep everything going and running smooth.

Lampasas High School has 2 great Ag. Teachers Dr. Steve Forsythe and Wes Harris who are a constant help with everything. Wes started teaching in Lampasas in 2001 after graduating from Texas A&M in 1999 with his degree in Ag. Science. Doc has taught here since 1998 and he received his doctrine from Oklahoma State University in 1981. He also held the office of Executive Secretary for 3 years for the State of Texas Young Farmers. Both men are exceptional with the students, as teachers, and as our Chapter and Area Advisors.

Each year we give $1500.00 in scholarships to seniors who will continue with Ag. related careers. Our Ag. Mechanics Show has grown from a handful of students showing to over 20 entrees a year. We give premium money and awards in each of our 5 categories. We have a junior and a senior show class now and the Best in Show and Reserve Best in Show go to premium sales.  

Our local chapter meets the last Thursday of each month and we usually have a speaker every other month. There are so many people with agricultural experience to share with us it’s not hard to find a good speaker. We work the snack bar for the swine show to make extra money for different projects. We also go out into our town and get donations for our Ag. Show which we have every January.  

I want to thank everyone who works so hard to make it all come together each year, without y’all we couldn’t make it. Young Farmers has become a part of our lives and I wouldn’t miss out on any of it. This is a great program and I’m honored to be a part of it.

Get active in your Chapter and I’ll guarantee you won’t regret it. We do make a difference in the lives of young people, and they in turn make a difference in ours.

Take care and I hope to see you at a meeting.

Terri Young