Miss Decatur County cultivates a passion for agriculture

Story written by The 812's Valerie Weston

(GREENSBURG, Ind.) – Miss Decatur County Addie Guack says she is honored and excited to be a role model for the community that raised her.

Gauck, who grew up in Decatur County, comes from a family of farmers and began helping on the farm as early as five years old. At the age of 11 she began raising hogs for her family business and eventually purchased a chicken operation. Though she has since sold both businesses, the experience taught her valuable lessons in livestock care and entrepreneurship.

Gauck has also participated in 4-H from a young age. Throughout her time in 4H she showed both sheep and pigs and learned the value in taking care of animals, being productive, and time management. Her role as Miss Decatur County marks her eleventh year in 4H.

While sharing her 4H experience, Gauck said, “I think it's made me the person I am today, made me as motivated as I am today.”

Addie is currently studying Ag Systems Management at Purdue University. This path will provide her with a broad and diverse learning experience that she can apply to a variety of professional agriculture settings.

In addition to her schooling, Gauck is involved in multiple campus organizations that reflect her roots in agriculture. She is a member of the professional agricultural sorority Sigma Alpha and a part of the Purdue Ag Week task force where she works alongside other members to cultivate a deeper understanding of agriculture among Purdue students.

Gauck is also the sponsorship chair for the prestigious organizations Purdue Rising Professionals and Purdue Old Masters.

“I think having such a loving community here in Decatur County has pushed me to find my community as Purdue," Gauck said.

This past spring, Gauck was honored to take a week long Study Abroad in Ireland through Purdue Agriculture. During the trip she visited Dublin, Cork and Galway where she experienced and learned about the differences of agriculture in the US compared to Ireland.

A memorable experience Gauck shared was visiting a dairy farm of 20 cows, which was considered a large operation.

Gauck also recently traveled to China through the United States Soybean Export Council and United States Heartland China Association. This trip offered college students the opportunity to immerse themselves into a different ag culture and learn about trade and relations with China.

She visited Beijing and Henan Province where she toured an AG research park, the Muyaun hog facility, and the Smithfield hog butchering and processing facility. She gained knowledge in crop production while learning about plant breeding, tissue culturing, and wheat crop processing in China. Her knowledge in livestock management grew significantly during her visit to Muyaun where they raise hogs in six story buildings.

Gauck hopes to integrate what she has learned during her travels into the professional field after she graduates college.

Currently, Gauck has an internship with Xperience Ag and is looking forward to continuing school in the fall and seeing where her role as Miss Decatur County takes her.