by Kory Glover
AgriNews Staff Writer
WINCHESTER – Growing up on his parents’ farm, Winwood Farms, gave Brandon Scheepers the know-how and interest to win the first ever Paul Adams Memorial Award.
“I’ve been interested in dairy and cattle pretty much all my life,” said Scheepers. “When I was a young kid, my mom would have me in the stroller behind the cows while she was milking them. So, in actuality, I’ve technically been raised in the barn.”
The Paul Adams Memorial Award is awarded to individuals who are looking to pursue careers on the production side of agriculture. It’s awarded based on interest in dairy production, soil stewardship and financial need.
Scheepers, who is currently enrolled in the farm management and technology program at McGill University’s, Macdonald College, has volunteered for a number of different charities in the area, been involved in many 4-H Club events since he was a young boy and has recently become a certified auctioneer. So, it seemed that he was a well-fitted recipient of the award.
“I thought it was very humbling when I heard I had won the award,” Scheepers said about learning he had won the Paul Adams Memorial Award. “I was speaking with my program director and he said it was a very fitting match. Another student from Quebec was also the recipient of this award and he said that our personalities were a good fit for the award. So, I found it to be very humbling.”
Along with the award, Scheepers also received a cheque in the amount of $500, which he says he will use to continue funding his education.
After graduating from McGill, he plans to continue working on his parents’ farm and expand it through more advanced technologies, construction and furthering the productivity of crops.
“My future goal is come home and work on the farm with my parents once I have graduated and continue to expand the dairy industry on our farm. We’re looking to build a new barn in the future, it’ll be interesting to see how that’ll play out in the future,” he said. “I would also like to further productivity in the fields along with my father. We look towards putting in milking robots within the new barn and putting in new rotations of different crops with different methods of planting, implements of cover crops and just different ways in order to achieve efficiency.”
He continued, “My Mom and Dad bought the farm back in the early 2000s and have been working here since 1998. But my grandparents bought this farm back 1978. We specialize in dairy, we milk approximately 85 to 90 cows and have total 850 acres. We’re very proud of what we have.”
