Montana Farmers Union Expands Women's Conference To Eastern MT

The popular Montana Farmers Union Women’s Conference is expanding this spring to include a second event in eastern Montana.

Registration is now open for the inaugural MFU Eastern Montana Women’s Conference to be held March 31-April 1 in Sidney.

“The Women’s Conference is a low-cost event, and you will make new friends and learn new things not only about the area and the agriculture in your area but yourself at the same time,” said Sarah Degn, a longtime Women’s Conference attendee and MFU board member who farms near Sidney.

Holding the Women’s Conference in two locations increases access and opportunity, along with the number of women able to participate, said Peyton Cole, who is heading up planning for the event.

“We want to make this event more accessible to everyone,” Cole said.

The agenda includes a panel discussion on cooperatives, a workshop on identifying stress in yourself and loved ones, a keynote presentation from Courtney Brown Kibblewhite, a fun trivia night, an informational session on succession planning, and more.

A new MFU Book Club also will launch during the event, with the announcement of the first month’s read: “The Farmer’s Lawyer” by Sarah Vogel.

Plenty of space for women to network and advocate for each other is built in to the agenda as well.

“You’re able to be vulnerable, and when you’re vulnerable, it can be very inspiring,” Cole said.

Conversations get deep fast, and priceless friendships are formed, Degn said.

“Nobody else is going to understand you the way the rest of us do. We identify with the struggles, the good parts, and farm life along with balancing family, friends and regular life. The thing you come out of this with the most is lifelong friendships, in this case with women from our own community,” Degn added.

“Other ag-related conferences that focus on the nitty gritty of the industry are worthwhile too, but Women’s Conference is for far more than learning about industry practices”, Degn said.

“I get so much more out of it because it’s a mental refresh. It’s just a different feel because we do focus so much more on the whole person – not just that we’re farmers and ranchers, but that we’re women who happen to be in farming and ranching,” she said.

To learn more and register, go to https://montanafarmersunion.com/mfuevents/2023-eastern-womens-conference/. Registration for the conference with accommodations closes March 16. Registration for the conference without accommodations needed closes March 29.