Kevin Bender is a grain farmer in the Sylvan Lake/Bentley region. He has been married to his wife Sara for 22 years and they have 5 children. Kevin has been very involved in the agriculture industry in Alberta as a past director with Alberta Wheat Commission, Western Canadian Wheat Growers, and Alberta Canola.

Eric Brodie was raised in East Central Alberta. He was in 4-H for 10 years and learned a great amount about agriculture and leadership in this program. He attended the University of Alberta with BSc. AG majoring in Animal Science and minor in Ag Business. He also holds a Public relations diploma from Macewan and a Business Administration majoring in Strategic Sales from NAIT. Eric has been involved in all sectors of agriculture from ag retail to equipment working with John Deere dealers as a combine and seeding specialist. Eric embraces innovation and technology in agriculture and sees the value of knowing what to do with big data. Eric is currently employed as an Innovation Specialist for BASF located in Eastern Alberta.

Carrie has been involved in the cattle industry from a young age, including purebred and commercial operations in Alberta and Saskatchewan. Raised on a purebred Charolais and mixed grain farming operation (Circle Cee Charolais of Lamont, AB), her passion for the beef industry began a participant in the 4-H program as a member for 10 years and returned as a Leader throughout university. She was the recipient of many leadership and scholarship awards, as well as livestock judging trips throughout Canada and the US. Carrie is an advocate of the value of the 4-H, breed association youth programs and industry mentorships offered in the industry today. She completed the Canadian Cattle Young Leaders mentorship as a mentor in 2019-2021 and is a tutor for the current school year at the Olds College of Agriculture and Technology.

Carrie’s degree in Agricultural Business Management from the University of Alberta helped pave her career path in the agricultural industry. Having worked with the Saskatchewan Stock Growers Assoc, Farm Credit Canada, Elanco Animal Health, JGL Group of Companies she has gained experience in many different areas of the industry. Currently with the Nutrien, she is the Territory Manager.

Carrie and her partner Stuart call the Eagle Hill area home with a handful of critters. She keeps her curiosity in check by frequently enrolling in courses on various subjects and hitting the highway on a random road trips. Over the years, she has volunteered her time with the Alberta and Canadian Charolais Youth Associations, the Lamont Agricultural Society, Farm Fair International, Canadian Western Agribition, as was also a founding member of the Cattlewomen for the Cure.

Born and raised in the Bentley area, Jason is a third-generation farmer. He lives and farms on Lenz Farms, located two miles southwest of Bentley. For the past 30 years Jason has farmed on the land acquired by his grandfather in 1948, the last 25 years of which have been in partnership with his father and uncle.

Jason and his wife Paula have three grown children who were also raised on Lenz Farms. They run a diversified operation that traditionally grows malt barley, wheat, canola, and faba beans. They also manage a small cow/calf commercial herd. The farm has always strived to be progressive in the use of Ag technology and currently employ the services of FarmersEdge to develop their Variable Rate Fertilizer and Seeding prescriptions. They were early adopters of GPS Auotguidance and are exploring the use of Drone technology.

Jason has served on numerous National Boards and Committee’s and served as Chairman with Alberta Barley in 2017 & 2018. He is currently serving in his first year as a Director on the Alberta Wheat Commission.

Before becoming fully engaged in Agricultural organizations, Jason was the General Manager for the Innisfail Eagles Senior Men’s AAA Hockey Club in the Chinook Hockey League and also won the Allan Cup in 2009 as a member of the Coaching Staff with the Bentley Generals.