World Dairy Volunteers Honored as Friends of Expo

World Dairy Expo’s annual Friends of Expo Party was held on Monday, December 11, recognizing the efforts and contributions of WDE’s nearly 500 volunteers. The evening was highlighted with the presentation of the 2017 Friend of Expo Awards to longtime Expo supporters, Diane Morgenthaler, Dr. David Jeans, Rick Farris and Suzanne Lois, for their dedication to the continued success of World Dairy Expo.  

Working at the Greater Madison Convention and Visitors Bureau, Diane Morgenthaler spends September and October preparing for World Dairy Expo and the people it brings to Madison. Creating promotional items, including highway billboards and signs at the Dane County Regional Airport, Morgenthaler’s work promoting Expo can be seen around Madison. She also provides materials to WDE exhibitors and international visitors helping them discover everything Madison has to offer. Through her insider information, Expo attendees can explore the city and the Alliant Energy Center with ease.

Dr. David Jeans has been the World Dairy Expo Ethics Coordinator for seven years. During the week of Expo, Dr. Jeans can be found overseeing student workers and veterinary staff taking milk samples from champions, working with the Ultrasound Coordinator and crew, walking the grounds monitoring cattle and exhibitors and assisting staff as ethics information and reports are generated. Through Dr. Jean’s oversight, Expo is able to maintain high ethical standards for its world-class Dairy Cattle Show.

The first face Expo exhibitors and attendees are likely to see is Rick Farris. Farris has been a key member of the team responsible for the smooth ingress and egress of more than 2,000 head of cattle and their exhibitors and 850 Trade Show companies for more than a decade. During show hours, the former Dane County Detective can be found working at the main entrance gate on Rimrock Road and overseeing the unloading and parking of school busses filled with fourth grade students and FFA members.

When Suzanne Lois is not working in the Genex Dairy Group’s Trade Show booth, she is busy volunteering in the Dairy Cattle Show. Lois’ Expo week begins on the Friday before WDE, when she assists with animal health check-in, followed by three days of locating and checking-in Milking Shorthorn cattle around the grounds for the show. She then moves to the Showring to assist during the International Milking Shorthorn Show before taking over the microphone on Thursday night to make barn calls for the Youth Showmanship Contest.

Serving as the meeting place of the global dairy industry, World Dairy Expo brings together the latest in dairy innovation and the best cattle in North America. Crowds of nearly 70,000 people, from 100 countries, will return to Madison, Wisconsin for the 52^nd annual event, October 2-6, 2018, when the world’s largest dairy-focused trade show, dairy and forage seminars, a world-class dairy cattle show and more will be on display. Visit worlddairyexpo.com or follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat or YouTube for more information.