Aurora Cooperative announces 2022 scholarship winners

Aurora, Neb. – The Aurora Cooperative is pleased to announce its 2022 scholarship winners. Each year the Aurora Cooperative awards scholarships to students pursuing a college education and career in agriculture. This year $10,000 in scholarships was awarded to 15 students. The top five scholarship winners each received $1,000 with the remaining 10 students receiving $500 each. The Aurora Cooperative is honored to help each of these outstanding young people further their education and achieve their goals within the agricultural field.

The students receiving $1,000 are as follows: Avery Eitzmann, daughter of Heath and Joanna Eitzmann of Hardy, NE; Joshua Shaw, son of Brian and Julie Shaw of Fairfield, NE; Lacey Schmidt, daughter of Andrew and Ellen Schmidt of Deshler, NE; Madison Hirschman, daughter of Robert and Kathryn Hirschman of St, Paul, NE; Wyatt Brockman, son of Philip and Amy Brockman of Lawrence, NE.  

Students receiving $500 are as follows: Abigail Meyer, daughter of Shane and Alison Meyer of Blue Hill, NE; Ashlyn Robinson, daughter of Randy and Becky Robinson of North Platte, NE; Brekyn Papineau, son of Randy and Tonya Papineau of Marquette, NE; Joshua Jerabek, son of Kevin Lukasiewicz and Pam Jerabek of St. Paul, NE; Kaitlyn Heyen, daughter of Stan Heyen and Jo Heyen of Arcadia, NE; Katelyn Karr, daughter of Trevor and Jennifer Karr of Bladen, NE; Kylie Beard, daughter of Eric Beard and Sara Mertens of Nelson, NE; Peyton Pribyl, son of Jason and Blair Pribyl or Milligan, NE; Tanner Huber, son of Jeffrey and Leslie Huber of Sutton, NE; Wyatt Reese, son of Ronnie and Kim Reese of Pleasanton, NE.  

As part of the application, each student was asked to write an essay titled, “How I Plan to Contribute to Agriculture.” Below is a small excerpt from the top five students’ essays.

“As a veterinarian, I will have many ways that I can contribute to agriculture. The first way that I will be able to contribute is by treating livestock and other animals who seem to be sick or in need of care. This is very important to me because animals provide people with many different goods and services. This is why it is super important that they remain as healthy as possible.” – Avery Eitzmann  

“Breeding is of particular interest to me. I’m active in FFA, 4-H, and the Nebraska Junior Angus Association. Throughout the years I have shown my cattle at the local, state, and national level. I truly enjoy this and have received much success. This is where breeding my heifers to be both desirable show heifers AND great cattle for my hear is of utmost importance. I spend countless hours researching sire’s pedigree, phenotype, and epd’s in order to improve my herd. I’m active in the entire breeding process.” – Joshua Shaw

“My plan is to attend a two-year community college to start with where I can participate on their livestock judging team. Animal Science – Feedlot Management and cow/calf production is what I would like to major in and minor in Agricultural Marketing. After I receive my associate degree, I plan to transfer to a four-year university to finish my education. After I finish college, I plan to return to the family farm. Our goal is expanding the livestock operation with a larger size feedlot and a greater number of cattle in the cow/calf herd. By continuing to grow and expand the farm, it will ensure that the family legacy is kept for future generations to come.” – Lacey Schmidt

“My future plans include attending the University of Nebraska-Lincoln majoring in Animal Science and minoring in the Engler program to expand my knowledge. After receiving my degree, I plan to return to my operation to keep expanding my herd of Red Angus and Charolais cows. I also plan to learn how to artificially inseminate my own cows to get high quality genetics into my herd and even use the process of embryo transfer to sell show cattle.” – Madison Hirschman

“How I plan to contribute to agriculture is as an agronomist. I hope to bring back the knowledge I learned and use it to better our farmers and ranchers within the community. I can help influence what fertilizers and chemicals to use to get the highest yield possible to better maximize their profitability and help raise a crop used to feed the world. As the population is on the rise the land able to be used is declining. I feel it is my job to help figure out the most efficient way we farmers and ranchers can do this, while protecting the natural resources we have left.” – Wyatt Brockman   

About Aurora Cooperative – Established in 1908, Aurora Cooperative is driven by one fundamental belief: By joining together, farmers can accomplish things they cannot accomplish alone. That belief hasn’t changed in more than 100 years, and it’s why every decision and every investment we make is focused on what’s best for the farmers who own this company. To learn more about The Aurora Cooperative, visit their website at www.auroracoop.com.