MWCA Western Spring Training

AGENDA:

Tuesday March 28th:

10:00am-1:00pm – MWCA Board Meeting (lunch provided)

1:00pm-1:30pm - Check-In/Registration

1:30pm-2:30pm – Safety in Agriculture – Kendra Lewis
Bio:
My name is Kendra Lewis, if you listen to my podcasts, you may also know me as “Kenny from the big sky state”. I recently graduated from Rocky Mountain College with a Doctor in Occupational Therapy. I grew up in the small town of Geraldine, MT. For as long as I can remember my world has been filled with agriculture and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I grew up running around my family's farm and ranch supply stores, Joyce Fuel and Feeds, located in Geraldine, Fort Benton, and Geyser. Lucky for me, I not only grew up around the agricultural business perspective, but also the producer side with my family being both farm and ranch producers. I have always been passionate about helping individuals living
with disabilities.

Presentation:
My passion for the disabled agricultural population grew in the midst of a cold calving season and a connection with one particular individual living the lifestyle and building a ranching legacy from the seat of a power wheelchair. Through this perspective and the lens of the occupational therapy profession, my business has developed into my dream career. The mission of my business is to cultivate connection, support, advocacy, and compassion for all individuals in agriculture who have sustained injuries, accidents, or have disabilities. On the opposite side, I am also very passionate about the prevention of agricultural injuries. Thank you for what you do for the agricultural industry, I appreciate you! We will be talking about different scenarios that you may find yourself in, how to avoid them and what to do if injuries happen.

2:30pm-5:00pm – Free time to discover Polson

5:00pm-6:00pm – Dinner at McKenzie River in the Hotel

6:30pm-9:00pm – Pint Night with Cutting Fences Foundation at Glacier Brewing Company or Trivia Night at the Perfect Shot Tavern

Wednesday March 29th :

8:30am-9:30am - Flowering Rush Monitoring - Virgil Dupuis
Bio
Virgil Dupuis has been Extension Director at Salish Kootenai College for the past 24 years implementing “Integrated Extension Programming to Restore Ecological and Human Health. SKC Extension programming focus includes extension education and research into the control and management of annual invasive grasses, native pollinator restoration, no-till seeding of desirable grass and forbs, and control of flowering rush, an aquatic invasive plant infesting Flathead Lake, Upper and Lower Flathead Rivers, Clark Fork River, and the Columbia River. Food sovereignty programming in nutrition, “Healthy and Sustainable Diets for All”, and “Gardens for Life,” a hands-on gardening program with a focus on
resolving human health disparities and the environmental and economic benefits of organic gardening.

Presentation:
Flowering rush is an invasive aquatic macrophyte infesting Flathead Lake, the Upper and Lower Flathead Rivers, the Clark Fork River, and the Columbia River. This presentation will address the invasion biology of flowering rush, environmental impacts, management and controls, and implementation of the SouthFlathead Lake Flowering Rush Controls Project.

9:30am-10:30am - Diagnosing Herbicide Symptoms - Tim Seipel
Bio:
Tim Seipel is an assistant research professor and cropland weed extension specialist at Montana State University.
Presentation:
Identifying non-target herbicide injury by understanding mode of action and visual symptoms. In this presentation we will review herbicide mode of action to better understand symptoms of non-target herbicide injury. We will discuss real life examples from different situations. 

10:30am-10:45am – BREAK

10:45am-11:45am - Aquatic Weed Management - Chris Mascari

11:45am – 12:00pm – Checkout