ROBERT PIERCE
• Leader & Times
Juggling expectations, demands and responsibilities is a part of life, but showing up as one’s best self in all areas of life means honoring one’s own needs too.
This is the goal of the upcoming Rooted in Resilience Retreat hosted by Kansas Farm Bureau’s Women’s Leadership Committee (WLC) Nov. 22, 23 and 24 in Valley Falls.
KFB State Affairs Manager Claudia Hissong said a group of about 20 ladies have been invited to be part of an inclusive community of like-minded women, and the retreat will focus on mental health, self-care and the tools to find balance and build a more enriching life.
This is the retreat’s second year, and Hissong the ladies who make up the WLC put the retreat on with speakers and fun activities in mind for those in attendance.
Primarily on the committee’s mind recently, though, has been the subject of mental health.
“There was not a lot being done within Kansas Farm Bureau to address mental health, and we are seeing more and more with the farm economy and the stress farmers and ranchers carry,” Hissong said.
With this in mind, Hissong said the WLC felt there was more of an emphasis needed on mental health.
“The Women’s Leadership Committee started to think of what they could do to address those circumstances,” she said. “We know there are a lot of great conferences out there for women, so they wanted to do something a little different.”
Hissong said the WLC, therefore, focused their efforts on a smaller weekend long conference focusing on community building and a sense of belonging.
“They can build a relationship with fellow attendees,” she said. “They know there’s a group of ladies who support them, understand their struggles and are walking through those same struggles with them.”
Hissong said this is how the WLC decided on a weekend retreat with a small group featuring some professions to talk about mental health and break down its stigma.
“Ultimately, the goal of all of the efforts of the committee is breaking down the stigma around mental health especially in agriculture and rural communities,” she said.
Hissong said the inaugural Rooted in Resilience Retreat in 2023 was enjoyed by all, and she expects similar results from this year’s retreat.
“We had some feedback from attendees last year, and they loved it,” she said. “They thought it really served all the things we were trying to accomplish. They left feeling connected. They left feeling rejuvenated, and it was really an opportunity to provide some care for themselves.”
Hissong said 2023 retreat attendees got to put themselves first and step back from the busyness of life, and this year’s group can expect the same.
“We were really excited with the awesome feedback we had last year, and we decided to do it again this year,” she said. “I’m really looking forward to hopefully having another impactful retreat coming up in November.”
With everyone feeling busy and overwhelmed from time to time, Hissong said the retreat is a perfect escape.
“It has a lot of great tools and networking and hearing from the speakers,” she said. “It’s super important for ladies to attend and give them an opportunity to step away from the busyness of life and put themselves first.”
In today’s world, Hissong said more and more women are stepping up to leadership roles in the agriculture industry.
“The Women’s Leadership Committee within Kansas Farm Bureau is a great example of that,” she said. “They are planning awesome events throughout their communities across the state to really impact and be in contact with those ladies involved in agriculture.”
How each person is involved in agriculture, Hissong said, looks different for each person as well.
“Reaching each lady, making sure she has a voice and feeling a sense of ownership and a belonging within the ag community is something the committee is really passionate about and is working toward,” she said.
Women play an important role in agriculture, so much so that Hissong called them the backbone of the family farm.
“They serve a lot of different roles,” she said. “They’re the caretaker sometimes. They’re the manager. They’re the farm owners. They step in a lot of times when other people step out.”
Hissong said women’s importance in agriculture is also by the amount of hats they wear and responsibilities they carry.
“We need to be an organization and a committee that serves all of those women, which is one of the reasons this retreat came about,” she said. “It was an opportunity to connect young, old, all generations, all backgrounds, all involvements in agriculture or non-involvements in agriculture. It was really an opportunity to reach ladies where they’re at and make them feel welcome.”
Likewise, Hissong said the retreat provides many chances for women to see and connect with ladies similar to them and who are going through similar situations.
“They can help them,” she said. “They can talk through their struggles. They can talk through their successes and leave the ladies feeling this is where I belong, these are people who get me, and these are people I can go to if I ever need them in the future to have that lasting impact.”
Registration for this year’s Rooted in Resilience Retreat closed in October, and though they can no longer register for this year, Hissong said women can still plan ahead for 2025’s event.
“If they’re interested for next year, they can watch the kfb.org Events page or watch our social media channel,” she said.
Hissong said she is very excited for the upcoming retreat.
“This is one of my favorite events we do within Farm Bureau,” she said. “It’s very different fro all the other events we do. It’s a good opportunity. It’s not the conference room style. It’s a very laid back casual setting that really focuses on relationship building.”
Hissong too is looking forward to the impact the WLC can have on women from across the Sunflower State.
“It’s always so fun to watch, and it’s so fun to see that relationship develop as the weekend progresses,” she said.
