The seeds of a dream tended with much hard work and perseverance have one young couple reaping the rewards. It’s a bountiful harvest for first-generation farmers Braden and Jordan McInnis of Anderson County.
The couple was named the winner of Texas Farm Bureau’s 2019 Outstanding Young Farmer & Rancher competition at the organization’s recent 86th Annual Meeting in San Antonio.
At the American Farm Bureau Federation Annual Meeting in Austin, Texas, in January, Braden and Jordan McInnis received the YF&R Achievement Award. They won a new Ford truck, courtesy of Ford. They will also receive paid registration to the AFBF Young Farmers & Ranchers Leadership Conference in Louisville, Kentucky, March 13-16.
“Farming is never easy, but it can be even more difficult to break into as a first-generation farmer, “TFB President Russell Boening said. “Braden and Jordan are a determined young couple who have made their dreams in agriculture come true, and we’re honoring their dedication with this award.”
Braden began farming in 2009, when he was a sophomore in high school. Since then, his farm has grown.
The couple farms corn, cotton, wheat, soybeans, oats, grain sorghum and hay. They also provide commercial spray applicator services and regional agricultural trucking, custom farm and clear land. The McInnises also have a cow-calf operation.
In addition to helping on the farm, Jordan is the head agricultural science teacher at Elkhart High School.
The young couple resides in Tennessee Colony.
The McInnises also serve on TFB’s Young Farmer & Rancher Advisory Committee and participate in Farm Bureau activities on the county and state level.
“The Outstanding Young Farmer & Rancher competition recognizes farmers and ranchers between the ages of 18 and 35 for their dedication to Texas agriculture,” Boening said. “This year’s contest highlighted several diverse and innovative operations. These young couples are not only running successful farms and ranches, raising their families and contributing to their communities, but they’re also finding the time to advocate for agriculture and share their stories with consumers. They’re all to be commended.”
As winners of the Outstanding YF&R contest, the McInnises represented Texas in the American Farm Bureau Federation’s Achievement Award competition in January in Austin.
They’ll also receive the title to a 3/4 ton, 4-wheel drive Ford pickup with a diesel engine, sponsored by Texas Farm Bureau Insurance Companies, and a $5,000 cash award, courtesy of Farm Credit.
Other finalists in this year’s TFB competition include Matt and Jessica Hanslik of Lavaca County and Jesse and Karri Wieners of Carson County.
The Texas Farm Bureau contributed this article.
Braden and Jordan McInnis | OYFR 2019 from Texas Farm Bureau on Vimeo.