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Keynote Speakers-Tuesday April 1, 2008 Elaine Froese (Keynote Speaker)
Seeds of Encouragement is the name of Elaine's business and her monthly column in Grainews, a farm paper that reaches 50,000 readers. As a columnist and speaker to many rural audiences, Elaine s practical and from the heart style has inspired many families to revitalize their relationships and farm businesses. Elaine is certified with the Hudson Institute of Santa Barbara as a professional coach. She helps families “Discuss the Undiscussabull™ She also holds a certificate in conflict resolution and palliative care. Growing up on a mixed farm, driving the combine and communicating
for a growing enterprise gives Elaine heavy doses of common sense.
She is real, warm, and encouraging. (website)
V. J. Smith (Luncheon Speaker)
Smith has also been a bill collector, solar collector salesman and a fundraiser. “Being a child of the early ‘70s, it took me a little while to figure out what I wanted to do with my life,” he says. As for his speaking ability, he credits that with growing up with three brothers and four sisters. “You had to learn to talk loud and fast or you didn’t get much to eat,” Smith muses. Drawing on his lifetime experiences, Smith peppers his talks with anecdotes and personal stories to illustrate key points. He feels he is better equipped to be a storyteller, not a preacher. Smith honed his speaking skills through his membership in Toastmaster’s International. On two occasions he was a finalist in that organization’s ‘World’s Championship of Public Speaking. ’ A 1978 graduate of South Dakota State University, Smith spent the decade of the 1980s working for the Allied Signal Aerospace Company in Kansas City, MO. He returned to his alma mater in 1990 to serve as Assistant Athletic Director for the SDSU athletic program. He was appointed Executive Director of the SDSU Alumni Association in 1996 and resigned from that position in January 2007 due to the overwhelming requests for speaking appearances. Smith is the author of the book, The Richest Man in Town. (website)
M. Melinda Meador (Capstone Speaker)
Ms. Meador holds a law degree from Wake Forest University, a Masters in Economics from North Carolina State University and a Masters in Agricultural Law from the University of Arkansas. Ms. Meador grew up in central Florida surrounded by citrus groves and cow-calf operations.
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Elaine Froese farms in southwestern Manitoba with her husband
running a certified seed business. Elaine started encouraging farm
families over 25 years ago as a Professional Home Economist. She
has spent many hours at farm kitchen tables with families.
V.J.
Smith has been a professional speaker for more than a decade. He
is also a published author. 
M. Melinda Meador is serving as the Agriculture Attache with the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), USDA, at the American Embassy Paris and has been in this post since August 2005. From Oct 2001 until August 2005, she worked as an international trade policy specialist with the European and Middle Eastern section, International Trade Policy division at FAS in Washington, DC. Prior to this, she assisted with administrative legal cases with the Packers and Stockyards Administration in Denver, CO. She also practiced law for four and a half years before deciding to specialize in agricultural law.