DAIRY ST R
Minnesota Dairy Princess Special Edition
May 14, 2022
A dream year
Euerle reflects on her time serving as Princess Kay By Kate Rechtzigel Staff Writer
LITCHFIELD, Minn. − Becoming Princess Kay of the Milky Way was a dream come true for Anna Euerle. “Growing up, I always tagged along to parades and different events with my sisters who were county dairy princesses at the time,” Euerle said. “I really enjoyed that and when I was in high school, I realized that advocating for the dairy community is something that I’m really passionate about.” Euerle currently serves at the 68th Princess Kay of the Milky Way, representing dairy farmers across the
state of Minnesota. She grew up on her family’s 80-cow dairy in Meeker County near Litchfield. On the farm, she has milked cows, fed calves, driven tractors and done fieldwork with her parents, Vaugh and Joan, and siblings, Melissa, Alex and Emily. She is currently a junior at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls studying food science and technology. Before becoming Princess Kay, Euerle also gained work experience at a 30-cow and a 600-cow dairy. “Working at three farms with very different herd sizes really showed me that I have all the tools to become Princess Kay,” Euerle said.
PHOTO SUBMITTED
Princess Kay Anna Euerle helps children make ice cream during a promotional event at Kandi Land Farm in Willmar, Minnesota.
PHOTO SUBMITTED
Anna Euerle serves as the 68th Princess Kay of the Milky Way. Euerle is a student studying food science and technology at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls.
“It seemed kind of daunting at first, but I realized that if you are really passionate about something, it just comes easy and it’s not scary at all.” During the school year Euerle has been at a couple events each week, ranging from Midwest Dairy sponsored events, Fuel Up To Play 60 events, banquets, official meetings, local agriculture awareness days, a kickboxing event and classroom visits. “There’s a huge variety and no two events are ever the same,” Euerle said. During her classroom visits, Euerle reads dairyrelated books, makes butter with students and takes them on a 360-degree virtual reality tour of a robotic rotary dairy farm. The tour shows students
the holding pen, parlor, free stalls, feed alley and the calf barn. “For a lot of them, this is the first time they’ve seen a dairy farm, so it’s really cool to be able to share that with them,” Euerle said. Last October, she had the opportunity to participate in a kickboxing event put on by the Mall of America. “I was able to kickbox for the first time,” Euerle said. “I shared that there are 13 essential nutrients in all of our dairy products and how it’s important to refuel your body after a workout.” Her favorite event this past year was attending the Minnesota Vikings game with the Fuel Up To Play 60 program. Throughout the year, she was also able to participate in interactive Fuel Up To Play 60 events with
students and the Minnesota Vikings. “At the game, I was able to meet the different individuals involved with the program, from the administrators who were looking at the program to see if it would be a good fit for their school, the Minnesota Zoo and the Science Museum,” Euerle said. “It was really cool because this is a network of people who stand behind dairy farmers that you often wouldn’t think about.” At her events, Euerle shares the story of Minnesota dairy farmers and what they do on their farms every day to make sure they are creating a sustainable environment that lasts for many generations to Turn to EUERLE | Page 23
Introducing Your County Dairy Princesses For 2022... DISCLAIMER: The county dairy princesses featured in this special section are not necessarily going on to compete for the title of Princess Kay of the Milky Way. The section serves to recognize all dairy princess at the county level.