Randy Francois, chair of Iowa Farm Bureau's Young Farmer Advisory Committee, delivered a powerful address on the value of family and the importance of reaching out to the next generation of farmers to attendees of the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation (IFBF) annual meeting last week in Des Moines.

“You are all here today for a reason. It isn’t just by pure luck,” said Francois, who runs a row crop and hog operation with his wife, Megan, in Buchanan County. “It is because someone, somewhere along your journey invited you to a board meeting or encouraged you to attend a conference. Someone helped...