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Wisconsin ag leaders support neighbors’ mental health
A group of farmers is reaching out to neighboring farms and families to make sure they are mentally okay.
Neil Christenson is part of the Shawano County, Wisconsin’s Farm Bureau chapter and tells Brownfield that they put together sixty care packages to take to their neighbors. “As a farmer, I know how everyone is stressed at this point, this time of the year, so the care packages are something, but more or less, some of the people just want to visit, just talk, and tell how their day is going.”
Christenson says that conversation sharing concerns helps everyone know there’s someone who understands and cares about them.
Wisconsin Ag Secretary Randy Romanski also visited Shawano County Farm Bureau members on Thursday to help distribute care packages and share information about the Wisconsin Farm Center. He tells Brownfield, “We’ve got some additional clips and Farm Center information that we leave with folks, and it’s always important to talk about mental health, mental wellness, and May is the month that we obviously highlight that every year.”
An American Farm Bureau survey showed that mental health is something that many farmers, farmworkers, and rural adults struggle with. Ninety-one percent of those surveyed were stressed because of financial issues.