My name is Doreen Gillespie and I’m from Ethridge, MT. I’ve been a member of Farm Bureau for many years. My parents were members and now my husband and I are. My interest in participating in the ACE program is the need to inform others who are removed from the land. 

They have lost the truth of what we do. I want to help correct this. We can start a conversation and learn from what we hear and give credible information that is backed up with evidence. The ACE program will help me be a savory voice in this conversation. When I complete this program, I will stay connected with my county Farm Bureau and support them in every way I can. I will stay active and involved in my community and reach out to other audiences. 

There are many critical issues important to agriculture. My participation in the ACE program will help me fine tune my efforts to get the right message out. One issue that I will work on is Grizzly Bear management and reforming the Endangered Species Act. 

I believe the ACE program will help me better inform the public what the problems are within the Endangered Species Act, and how it affects the people who have to live with this large, dangerous animal. I again want to be the savory voice in this conversation to describe what we must deal with. The ACE program will help me to do my best to accomplish these goals. I will bring credible information that will be backed up with evidence. I will give the information I find to our decision makers. I will keep my county Farm Bureau informed with what I have found, and also give this information to my community. 

It is important for farmers and ranchers in rural Montana to continually develop their leadership and advocacy skills. To survive, we need to be the voice of reason and persuasion. We are being painted with a brush that does not show who we are, and written about with a pencil that is misleading. This brush and pencil needs to be in our hands, portraying our actual lifestyle, as these are the shoes we are walking in. The ACE program will help us accomplish this by providing tools and resources allowing us to become polished and credible advocates. I want to thank Farm Bureau for developing the ACE program and giving me the tools to advocate for our ag community.