EDMONTON – Ceres, the Roman goddess of agriculture, grain and motherly love, was one of the most beloved ancient gods.
She was loved for teaching common people how to grow, harvest, preserve and prepare grain and corn.
The women at the University of Alberta’s Ceres sorority, know the role of women in agriculture should still be cherished. So they organized a dinner celebrating Alberta women April 3.
“We felt it was a great opportunity to celebrate and show all the opportunities there are in agriculture for women,” said Danielle Lee, a member of the sorority.
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Like most of the women in Ceres, (pronounced series) Lee grew up on a farm and has an appreciation for the work done by farm women. Since she was little, Lee has spent hours helping her mother, Debbie, a volunteer at the Calgary Stampede and in numerous agriculture events.
The 20 members of the sorority all have an interest and appreciation for agriculture, said Lee. The sorority was originally chartered in the 1980s, but folded in the late 1990s. In 2004 the sorority was revived and so was the tradition of hosting an event for women in agriculture.
During the event three women were asked to talk about their role in agriculture.
- Former Alberta agriculture minister and deputy premier Shirley McClellan grew up the daughter of a John Deere dealer, but her real agriculture education came when she married a farmer.
“The first year was a little tough,” she said of the move from the urban community of Hanna to the farm at New Brigden.
Her new mother-in-law kept a neat house, a tidy yard and gladly donated pies to events when requested. Her husband’s five sisters were also accomplished farm women and the new daughter-in-law was expected to follow suit.
“It was quite a beginning,” McClellan told the group of mostly women at the Ceres dinner.
“I probably had a greater appreciation for what women contributed to the communities. I saw it with fresh eyes.”
During a farm women’s conference in Peace River where McClellan was a guest speaker, she said she asked the farm women to write a list of their jobs on the farm. When they were finished, pages of flip chart paper filled the room. It was an eye opener for everyone of the amount of work they did.
It’s not just modern farm women who juggle a variety of jobs at home and in the community. McClellan said rural communities depended on women. The Women’s Institutes made a huge contribution to rural life operating hospitals, libraries and community rest rooms.
“I don’t think there was any real recognition of it,” she said.
In her political work in Ralph Klein’s government, McClellan saw her role as an advocate for agriculture.
“My prime role was to make sure there was a strong, rural voice at the cabinet table,” she said.
- Elna Edgar knew all about farming when she married her brother’s best friend, Doug. Edgar grew up helping around the family farm and was a member of the 4-H beef and sewing club. When her father died in 1971, her mother continued to farm.
After her father died, her mother couldn’t get a Canadian Wheat Board permit book because she was a woman. Fast forward to 2004 when her second husband died. She was refused an Alberta farm fuel number. Women on the farm seem to be invisible, but at age 73, her mother is still driving tractor and putting up hay.
Edgar said she has a true partnership on the 1,400 acre grain, cattle and vegetable farm.
“My input is valued and encouraged,” she said.
Her husband is in charge of the hay, grain and equipment maintenance. She’s in charge of the cattle, vegetables and staff in their 25 acre vegetable patch. While Edgar sees herself as a full partner in the farm, it isn’t true to all agriculture.
“Try to buy a pair of Carhardt coveralls that actually fit us.”
When Edgar attended a combine clinic, she was the only woman in a class of 25 men.
Despite the difficulties, the farm has been a great place to live and to raise her two daughters, she said.
A few years ago a neighbour, Shelley Beck, asked Edgar’s daughters to grow peas to sell at the local farmers’ market. The peas led to other vegetables including a 17 acre patch of asparagus. The Edgars are now part of Innisfail Growers, a marketing group for five Alberta families who sell their produce through 20 farmers’ markets each week.
It’s the women of Innisfail Growers who are the key, said Edgar. The women look after the staff, find markets and grow products.
“It’s the women that do it all,” she said.
- Josie Van Lent could not imagine a life not associated with agriculture.
With a bachelor of science in agriculture, Van Lent has worked as a district agriculturist, provincial beef specialist and crop agronomist and now is associate dean of agriculture at Lakeland College in Vermilion.
She also helps farm 5,000 acres and tend 500 head of beef, bison and elk near Mannville with her husband, brother and sister-in-law.
“I’m very lucky to choose a career that suited me,” she told the group.
Van Lent was also a founding member of the Ceres sorority. Events like the women in agriculture evening provide an opportunity to network, she said.
“It’s a small, small industry we’re in.”
Through a combination of hard work and opportunity, Van Lent has carved out a career in agriculture. She said no job has been more satisfying than others, but small things make her thankful.
She remembers being invited to a field to make a round in the combine with a Bonnyville farmer she’d advised with seeding decisions in the spring.
As she watched the grain pour into the hopper and the yield monitor record the crop, Van Lent said she felt a sense of satisfaction. Leaving the field she watched a glowing red sunset across the prairie sky.
“It was beautiful and I felt like one of the few people in the world privileged to be in that environment.
“These are the kinds of experiences that mean a lot to me.”
Van Lent told the Ceres members to pick a good mentor and always do the right thing, even though it’s difficult. She remembers making a phone call to a farmer to say the company she worked for had just sprayed the wrong chemical on his barley field.
“I was dreading that phone call. It wasn’t as bad as I thought.”
She told the women to have fun and take advantage of all the wonderful things the industry has to offer, but most importantly, take time to enjoy sunsets in the field.
